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BILLY 

HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 
















One by one, in went all the crew. 

FuoNTisriECE. See Page 2G1. 




BILLY 


HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


BY 

CHARLES KEEN TAYLOR 


WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY 

SEARS GALLAGHER 


BOSTON 

LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY 
1911 



Copyright, 1911 ^ 

By Little, Brown, and Company. 
All rights reserved 
Published, September, 1911 





Pr(nter0 

8. J. Pakkhill & Co., Boston, U.8.A, 


©CI.A285720 


TO 


MY PARTICULAR BOY FRIEND 

CHARLES W. SCHWARTZ 

OTHERWISE KNOWN AS “ SWATTS ” 

THIS LITTLE BOOK IS AFFECTIONATELY 
DEDICATED 


V 


CONTENTS 


Part First. — On the Ocean 

Chapter Page 

I Billy’s School S 

II Courage 25 

III Mr. Van Lennep Makes Up his Mind . 41 

IV What the Ocean Began 58 

V The Ocean Shows What it Can Do . 73 

VI An Exciting Adventure 101 

Part Second. — In the Woods and Mountains 
VII The Sea Turns Over the Job . . . 119 

VIII The Woods Take a Hand 140 

IX What a Hay-mow is Good For . . . 156 

X Wherein Scotty Gets Excited . . . 178 

Part Third. — On the Lake 

XI Westward Ho! 201 

XII A Little Boating 225 

XIII More Boating — “ Susie ” Performs 

FOR THE Company 248 

XIV A Little Surprise 264 

XV Back to New York 276 












ILLUSTRATIONS 


One by one, in went all the crew . . . , 

The mate sent a bucket-full of sea-water 
over him 

The boat never ceased its onward sweep . 

“ Don’ shoot ! ” cried Antoine to his com- 
rades. “ Jus’ watch ! ” 


Frontispiece » 

Page 56 ^ 
“ 136 

« 194 .*^ 
















PART FIRST 


ON THE OCEAN 


♦ 



BILLY: 

HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


CHAPTER I 

BILLYHS SCHOOL 

^^I SAY, Lizzie,’^ cried Jimmy Fairfax, the school 
bully, guess you We going to volunteer, arenT 
you, like a big athlete, just to save the day?’' 

Leave me alone, Jimmy, can’t you? You 
know well enough I don’t know anything about 
baseball,” answered Lizzie,” who really was not 
a girl at all, but a stoop-shouldered, slender, ner- 
vous-looking boy not quite fifteen years old. 

'^Mustn’t be too modest, Elizabeth — don’t 
stand in your own light. An’ above all, don’t get 
unladylike about it. Sure you ’re going to volun- 
teer to save our despairin’ nine from defeat!” 
Then in a fierce whisper Jimmy added, ‘^Volun- 
teer to join the squad, you dub, or I ’ll — ” 
Well, he did not say just what he would do, he 


4 


BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


just left that to Lizzie^s quick imagination. Liz- 
zie, or, as some of the boys called him, Willie, 
knew only too well what Jimmy Fairfax was ca- 
pable of doing. He would much rather face the 
ridicule of his schoolmates than the bullying of 
Fairfax. Besides, it would be perfectly safe to 
volunteer. Mr. Jordan, the coach, was not fool 
enough to accept such a green weakling even for 
a scrub.^^ 

All right, if you 're so anxious about it," said 
Willie, at last; ‘^but I 'm no good at baseball, and 
you know it." 

But Fairfax did not care anything about his 
victim's ability. In fact, he cared very little about 
the nine, except that the games gave him oppor- 
tunity to swagger about the grand-stand in con- 
spicuous garments. But he really did enjoy mak- 
ing a spectacle of Willie, and, to tell the truth, he 
made a great success at this pleasant pastime. As 
soon as the boy agreed to try for the nine, Jimmy 
gave a shout of delight. 

Whoop her up, fellows!" cried he. ^^The 
honor of Craddock Academy is in safe hands! 
Will we get beaten next Saturday? Are we afraid 
of little Murray Hall? Nix. Our little friend 


BILLTS SCHOOL 5 

Lizzie is going to help win the day. She going 
to volunteer this very morning!^’ 

At this a roar of laughter went up from the 
school-yard, where a body of boys was gathered, 
discussing the prospects for the last game of the 
season. Though the game was no joke, Willie^s 
volunteering certainly was, so they laughed at him, 
and cheered him mockingly, till for very shame he 
took refuge in the school-building. As for Jimmy, 
he was quite pleased with himself, for this ridi- 
cule was just what he wanted to bring about. 

It is true, however, that there was no joking 
about the coming game. Craddock had had one 
of her most successful seasons, but it certainly 
looked as though defeat were coming to her in 
the very last game, for suddenly no less than six 
members of the nine were lost in rapid succession. 
Four were disqualified by the faculty because 
deficient in their lessons, and the other two had 
been taken ill. Now, Craddock^s nine had been 
first-class, but there were few substitutes, and 
they were not up to the mark, for Craddock 
being a small and very exclusive school, there 
were not many fellows to take part in athletics. 
This morning of which we have been speaking. 


6 


BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


the trainer, in despair, had sent in an appeal to 
the school for volunteers to try for the team. It 
was a desperate chance, with the game only two 
days away, but a desperate chance had to be 
taken, and the trainer hoped against hope that 
there might be a hidden star or two among the 
boys. 

No one thought of cancelling the game, and so, 
the honor of the school being at stake, several 
boys volunteered. But no such idea had entered 
Willie Van Lennep^s head. Baseball? Well, 
perhaps he had had a bat in his hands half a 
dozen times in his life. And then he was not a 
very nervy boy anyway, and hated to make 
an exhibition of himself. He really would have 
liked being an athlete, and secretly he had a great 
admiration for the big, strong fellows of the 
school teams ; but then he was not strong himself, 
and was quite short-winded. This latter failing 
was entirely his own fault, however, and he knew it. 
No, he was not a very promising candidate, and 
nothing could have induced him to give his name 
to the trainer but the very certain knowledge that 
Fairfax would give him a pounding before all the 
other fellows if he did not. He was terribly 


BILLY’S SCHOOL 


7 


afraid of Fairfax, — a big, heavy fellow of fifteen, 
who toadied to the older boys and bullied the 
smaller ones. 

Mr. Jordan, the coach and trainer, could hardly 
help smiling when Willie came into the office and 
hesitatingly gave in his name. But he was so glad 
to see what appeared to be a new spirit in a boy 
who had always seemed sissyish that he told 
him to report on the field that afternoon, slapped 
him on the back, and said that he would be a 
man, some day, after all, if he kept on. At this 
Willie blushed furiously, for he knew only too 
well how much manliness had to do with his 
handing in his name. He was considerably 
alarmed, too, for he had had no idea that he 
would be accepted. He felt that he would make 
an awful exhibition of himself. He became very 
angry at the scrape Fairfax had gotten him into. 

They teased him considerably that day, at 
school, and there was more ridicule when he ap- 
peared at the grounds, and presented himself to 
Mr. Jordan in the dressing-room. The trainer 
gave him a spare suit out of his stock, and soon 
Willie went out upon the field, feeling very ridic- 
ulous, and looking considerably more ridiculous 


8 


BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


than he felt. The baggy trousers made his thin 
legs look thinner than ever. Never before had 
he so envied the other fellows their superior 
running muscles.^’ 

For a while the remaining members of the nine, 
as well as the ten or more candidates, were kept 
busy throwing old balls back and forth, Willie 
managing to catch and even return the few he 
allowed to come in his direction. Then the 
greenies were sent to the bat in turn, to be 
tried-out by the regular pitcher. Several of the 
new boys acquitted themselves reasonably well, 
getting in a hit or two now and then, and finally 
came Willie’s turn. He felt what little courage he 
did possess sink into his shoes. But there was 
no backing-out now. When his name was called, 
therefore, he went forward and picked up the first 
bat he came across, and then took his position 
amid a hearty round of hand-clapping and laugh- 
ter from his amused schoolmates, which so flus- 
tered him that his knees knocked together. When 
the pitcher began his gyrations Willie was almost 
petrified with fright. Then he saw the ball coming, 
apparently straight for his chest. He gave a 
quick, ungainly step to one side, mechanically 


BILLTS SCHOOL 


9 


bringing the bat around at the same time. There 
was a smart crack and the ball bounded just 
between Willie and the pitcher. Really a beau- 
tiful bunt! 

Well, there was some surprise then, you may be 
sure! There were several dropping jaws and 
amazed whistles. Then the pitcher regained the 
ball, turned himself into a windmill, and again 
the ball came hurtling through the air. Again 
Willie^s heart almost stopped as he jumped to one 
side, and again, almost by accident, the ball hap- 
pened to hit the bat. And once more it fell 
between the pitcher and catcher. 

Mr. Jordan could hardly believe his eyes, any 
more than could the boys, and as for the pitcher, 
he was disgusted clean through. But the most 
amazed person there was Willie himself, who 
plucked up heart wonderfully, and began to act 
as though knocking bunts was his most common 
occupation. He cocked his hat more on the back 
of his head, and stood a minute with one skinny 
leg crossed over the other, leaning with a profes- 
sional air on the bat, while the pitcher regained the 
ball again. Now this time the latter gentleman 
meant business. There had been enough fooling. 


10 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

Lizzie, above all people! So he gritted his teeth 
and pitched an in’^ that made the air whistle. 
Again Willie stepped to one side, but this time, 
so encouraged was he, that he actually swung the 
bat as he stepped. There was a smart ^ ‘ smack, 
and the ball sailed over the pitcher, just out of 
reach, which so surprised the second baseman 
that he missed it too, and Willie, upon the shout 
of Run! Run!’’ managed to reach first before 
the guardian of that base got the ball! 

After that, Willie rejoined his dumfounded 
companions, and, as he considered himself quite 
a sport,” you may be sure that his attitude lost 
nothing by his good fortune. He put on all kinds 
of airs, and made no end of criticisms of his suc- 
cessors at the bat. 

The afternoon was soon over, and the boys went 
to their several homes, discussing the prospects 
for Satiurday’s game, now only a couple of days 
away. Things were not very hopeful. True it is 
that one or two other boys had shown up very well, 
the result of practice elsewhere, and there were a 
couple of others who would do at a pinch, but by 
far the most important topic of conversation was 
the blossoming-out of Willie, about the youngest 


BILLTS SCHOOL 


11 


boy there and considered the most hopeless, if 
there had been any hope for him at all. 

Willie arrived home quite late that afternoon, 
and was admitted by the butler. 

^^Your mother ^s been worried about you, Mr. 
William, said Dennis. 

^^Mph!^^ said Willie, brushing by the man, 
^m no baby to get worried about.’’ He flung 
his cap on the nearest chair, leaving Dennis to 
put it away. 

wish you were mine,” thought that gentle- 
man to himself. Faith, an’ ye ’d learn some- 
thing good for ye, that ye would!” But Willie 
stamped noisily up-stairs, where his mother, a 
delicate, nervous little lady, made haste to meet 
him. 

Where have you been. Will?” asked she, put- 
ting detaining hands on his shoulders; thought 
something must have happened.” 

‘^Nothing happened, of course. I ’ve just been 
playing a little baseball.” Willie watched his 
mother narrowly to see how she ’d take this bit 
of news. 

‘‘Baseball! Dearie me, you haven’t been 
playing baseball! , You mustn’t have such 


12 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


violent exercise. Remember, you are very deli- 
cate. You might injure yourself for life! Maybe 
I better send for Dr. Holden — ” 

“Pshaw, I ’m all right. I hate that stuffy old 
doctor.’’ Then he brusquely turned away and 
bustled off to his own quarters, where, before long, 
he was buried in a comfortable chair, deep in 
the adventures of “Dick, the Mountain-Devil,” 
while a man began getting out his clothes for 
evening. 

It is easy for you to see that Willie’s home was 
far from being a poor one. Indeed, his father was 
one of the wealthiest men in one of the wealthiest 
of cities. Willie, therefore, had lacked for noth- 
ing that money could buy, and had not done a 
single thing that some one else could be paid to 
do for him. It might be said, too, that only the 
boys called him “Willie,” for he loathed that 
name, and would have given anything to have 
been just plain “Bill ” with them, but that was 
something that not all his money could buy. At 
home, however, they were more considerate, and 
called him “William,” or “Will.” 

Willie did very much as he pleased. The only 
one who ever opposed his will was his father, but 


BILLY’S SCHOOL 


13 


then he saw his father so rarely that it made little 
difference. Mr. Van Lennep, though such a wealthy 
man, was an early riser, and had departed for his 
office by the time Willie had allowed the man to 
come in and help him dress. The only time he 
really had a good look at his father was at dinner 
when there was no company, and there was quite 
a deal of company. 

As for Mrs Van Lennep, well, she was inchned 
to let Willie have his way, for she thought it would 
break his spirit if he were made to do things 
against his will. From all this it is easy to under- 
stand that if Willie were decidedly spoiled, he 
might not be altogether to blame for it. 

But do not think that Willie was not a bright 
boy, for he was, but he had become so insuffer- 
ably lazy that he did not use his brains a bit 
more than he had to. He was quite capable of 
standing at the head of his class at school, but, 
instead, he was satisfied to just get along by the 
skin of his teeth, not doing the least work he could 
get out of doing, and I am afraid he found 
‘^cribbing a good deal easier than working. Cer- 
tain it is that he admired, after a fashion, the 
brilliant fellows who seemed to find their lessons 


14 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


so easy, but as for following their example, well, 
it was too much like work! 

With such characteristics, it is easy to under- 
stand why he was thin and had no muscles to 
speak of, but because he had not a little vanity, 
and wanted to make some kind of impression upon 
the other fellows, he tried to be what he termed 
a ^ ^ sport, wore a little cap on the back of his 
head, swore now and then in a blase kind of way, 
and smoked cigarettes till he was short-winded 
as could be. With his hanging head, poor com- 
plexion, and stooped shoulders, he was not, as 
far as appearances went, a very attractive boy. 
But you cannot always tell from the exterior, and 
truth compels it to be known that there was a 
lot of good stuff in Willie that would make a fine 
man of him, some day, if it ever got a chance! 

When Mr. Van Lennep came home, a little 
before dinner, he was met by his wife, who, in 
worried tones, told him that Willie had been 
playing baseball, and she was afraid that he might 
be injured for life. 

Mr. Van Lennep^s jaw dropped in real surprise. 
“What!’^ cried he, ^^you don’t mean to say that 
our William has actually been playing ball with 


BILLY’S SCHOOL 


15 


the boys?^’ Then he laughed ironically. ‘^Don^t 
worry, Helen,’’ he said, '^he ’ll never hurt himself 
that way. Nothing so strenuous. Baseball? 
About as near as he comes to playing baseball is 
watching his team from the top of the grand- 
stand. I may be mistaken about Willie, for I ’ll 
confess I don’t see much of him, not as much as I 
ought by a good deal, but he does not impress me 
as a boy who would be likely to injure himself 
greatly playing baseball. I ’m afraid you molly- 
coddle him, Helen.” 

Nothing more was said about it at Willie’s 
home, but Willie thought about it a good deal 
himself, for he knew in his heart that it had been 
only by the merest luck that he had made those 
three hits, and he felt quite sure of what would 
happen if he should be called into the coming 
game. 

The next afternoon he was on hand for practice, 
and Mr. Jordan, thinking Willie quite expert at the 
bat, sent him into the field, where he made him- 
self as inconspicuous as possible, and with great 
success avoided mistakes by carefully avoiding 
the ball whenever it seemed to start in his direction, 
all of which no one noticed. The result was that, 


16 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


after some hesitation, it is true, Mr. Jordan and 
the captain of the nine selected him, with five 
others of the candidates, to defend Craddock the 
next afternoon. It was a desperate choice, to be 
sure, but as Craddock was a very small academy, 
though very, very select,’’ the coach had to do 
the best he could with very little material. 

You cannot imagine the vast and disgusted 
surprise of Mr. Jimmy Fairfax over Lizzie’s” 
unexpected success. If he had dreamed such a 
thing possible, he would have been the last to 
have urged his usual victim to be a candidate. 
And then the airs since affected by Willie made 
him more furious than ever. So, during the recess 
of the morning before the game, he went after 
Willie, and started to plague him according to 
custom, but, to his surprise, there was none of the 
usual laughter from the other boys. Instead of 
that, some called to him to let ‘^Lizzie” alone, 
for Lizzie was doing more than he was, an3rway, 
and had a little school spirit, which was some- 
thing that some other fellows did n’t have. This 
made Jimmy more angry than ever, but, being a 
typical bully, he was also a coward, and so did not 
dare to go against his fellows openly. But he knew 


BILLTS SCHOOL 


17 


what he would do as soon as he had Willie alone. 
As for that gentleman, he had grace enough to 
blush over the matter, for he knew just how much 
‘^school spirit’^ had been instrumental in making 
him a candidate for the team. 

The fatal afternoon came, as afternoons have a 
habit of doing, and Willie trotted out with his 
nine, frightened half to death. He knew that 
he was there by accident, and had no business on 
the field, and would have given worlds to have 
been able to escape. But escape was impossible, 
so there was nothing for it but to stick it out and 
hope for the best. You know that the most cow- 
ardly animal will fight fiercely when trapped in a 
corner. Willie was trapped and pretty well cor- 
nered, and so gritted his teeth with the resolve to 
'^make good^^ somehow. 

It was an amazing game, after all. Dangerous 
as were the Murray Hall boys, the Craddocks did 
wonderfully well, greenies and all. They never 
expected to win. That, of course, was quite out 
of the question. But their ambition was to hold 
Murray down to a very small score, and that, 
considering the terrible handicap of having half a 
dozen green and inexperienced fellows playing, 


18 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


would be well enough. And so you may be sure 
that when the eighth inning left the score 2 to 0 
in favor of Murray there was not a word of 
complaint from the Craddock side of the grand- 
stand. And even Mr. Jordan was more than 
pleased, and considered such a score practically 
a victory for Craddock. 

Poor Willie, I must confess, had not shone re- 
markably during the game. He had not gotten a 
hit. Every time he had gone to the bat he had 
been struck out in one, two, three order. He al- 
most wept over it, especially when he recognized 
the raucous voice of Jimmy Fairfax howling above 
the others from the stand. 

His fielding could have been called neither good 
nor bad, for the simple reason that there was no 
fielding at all, as far as he was concerned. Fortu- 
nately, few balls came in his direction, but when 
one did, it was generally some other fellow who 
finally got it, for, among other things, Willie now 
had stage-fright, and willingly would have jumped 
down into a pit, had one conveniently opened 
before him. 

Time after time Mr. Jordan was on the point of 
withdrawing him, and putting in his place one 


BILLTS SCHOOL 


19 


of the few substitutes, but then he remembered 
how Willie had made three hits in succession dur- 
ing that famous practice, and so hoped against 
hope that the boy would repeat the performance. 

The ninth inning began with Murray at the 
bat. There were several perilously narrow es- 
capes, and the Craddocks felt chills running up 
and down their spines more than once. You can 
believe that there were sighs of relief from the team, 
and cheers from the stand, when the Murray Hall 
boys went running out upon the field at last, 
leaving the score unaltered. 

The first Craddock man at the bat was little 
Ben Holland, the cheeriest and pluckiest young- 
ster in the school. But it takes more than pluck 
to stop ^^ins^^ and “outs^^ coming at lightning 
speed. Ben made three hopeful swings through 
the air, and then, sorrowfully, walked slowly 
back to the bench. 

'^Hard luck, Bennie,^^ said the others; “made a 
good stab at it anyway.’^ 

Meanwhile Tommy MacRay, long and lanky, 
had picked up the longest bat he could find. 
Tommy was as cool as the coolest clam. He could 
make more hits than any fellow on the nine, but 


20 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


they were such nice gentle ones that one almost 
hated to catch them. Well, the Murray Hall 
pitcher went through various gymnastics and sent 
Tommy a beautiful ^^in^^ which Tommy promptly 
hit, fair and square. The ball went easily and 
accurately into the very pitcher^s hands, and 
Tommy, with face a yard long, followed Ben 
back to the bench, while Harry Lomond, the 
stalwart captain of the nine, went to the bat. 

It was ^^up to Harry, and Harry knew it. 
But no one was more worthy of the responsibility. 
The Craddocks actually held breath when they 
saw him poise his bat for the first ball. Instead of 
swinging, however, he stepped lightly to one side. 

'^One ball!^^ shouted the umpire. 

^‘Good eye, Harry yelled the Craddocks with 
one voice. 

Again the ball came. There was a sharp 
‘^smack,’^ the ball went sailing just over the head 
of the second-baseman, and just out of reach of a 
frantic fielder, and, when the boys came back to 
their senses, Harry, covered with dust, was clutch- 
ing second-base with one hand. There was a roar 
of applause then, you may be sure. But it was 
nothing to the second roar that went up when 


BILLTS SCHOOL 


21 


Fatty Janes knocked another into the back 
field, and reached first, fat and all, before the ball 
was recovered. Harry, to be sure, had lost no 
time getting to third. 

Well, the boys did cheer! But then that cheer 
suddenly stopped like magic, and was followed by 
a groan of real despair, for the next man at the bat 
was none other than Willie — Willie, with his 
knees knocking together, and who would have 
given everything he owned, or expected to own, 
to have been in Kamtchatka, Borneo, or any other 
place on earth. White-lipped, and almost suffocat- 
ing with fear, he managed to pick up a bat and 
take his place, while the groans from the stand 
grew louder and louder, until stilled by a wave 
from Mr. Jordan^s hand. But Jimmy Fairfax, 
gloating on the sight with real joy in his heart, 
cared little for Mr. Jordan’s hand. Don’t be 
frightened, Lizzie dear,” he called from his seat, 
a snicker going around at Willie’s expense as a 
result. This was the last straw. Suddenly poor 
Willie was filled with rage. His fear went like a 
flash, and he gritted his teeth in a fury because 
they all made fun of him and never let him alone. 
He had n’t a friend in the lot and he hated them 


22 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


all. He gripped the bat as though he would like 
to brain some one with it. Then he saw the ball 
coming. Quite mad with fury he gave a terrific 
half -blind swing at it. There was a great crack! 
followed by a cheer! The ball went sailing high 
and far, while Willie stood dumfounded, with a 
broken bat in his hands. There he stood like a 
dunce, while Harry and Fatty were making the 
dust fly. 

^^Run! Run! Run, you dub!” yelled every 
Craddock there, and Willie, his senses coming to 
him, ran with all his might. Even then he might 
have made it. But his smoking on the sly counted 
just a little against him, his wind failed, and he 
reached the base just one second after the Murray 
man had caught the ball. 

The less , said the better about what followed. 
There was a great confusion. Some, who really 
understood, patted Willie on the back, and said 
he ’d do better next time, while others, furious at 
Willie^s ^Tosing the game,” threatened him angrily, 
and not last, be sure, was Jimmy Fairfax. There- 
fore, dressing as quickly as possible, Willie slipped 
out and got home as quickly as possible, and, 
when there, hurried up to his room and almost 


BILLTS SCHOOL 


23 


buried himself in the pillows of his couch, from 
which no persuasions of his mother could cause 
him to move, so that she was certain he had been 
seriously injured by baseball, and was only pre- 
vented from sending for the doctor by Willie’s 
loudly expressed anger at the mention of such a 
thing. 

wish you’d leave me alone!” cried he, to 
his mother, with just a suspicion of a sniffle. 

Everybody nags me and I never have any fun! 
I ’m not sick! I ’m not hurt, I tell you! Go 
away. Mom, and leave me alone, oh, leave me 
alone!” 

And so, worried, and hurt too, Mrs. Van Len- 
nep went away and left Willie to himself, and 
he did not make his appearance till dinner time, 
when he came to the table, silent and gloomy, 
with rather red eyes. 

'^What ’s the matter. Will?” asked his father; 
‘‘you look as though you ’ve been through a 
sausage factory.” 

“He’s been playing baseball, I know,” said 
Mrs. Van Lennep, “and I know it is not good for 
him.” 

“Baseball!” exclaimed Mr. Van Lennep, sur- 


24 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


prised for a second time. ‘^Will, I never knew 
you liked baseball.’^ 

“Don’t like it — hate it/’ grumbled Willie 
sullenly. 

“Hum, don’t quite imderstand. Your mother 
does n’t want you to play it, and you will play it, 
and yet you hate it. How do you make that out? ” 

By way of answer Willie threw down his napkin 
and walked quickly from the room despite his 
father’s command to come back, and muttering 
something about being “left alone,” stamped up 
to his room. 

“Upon my soul, Helen, William is getting to 
be a proposition. I guess I have not been watch- 
ing his development as I should. I had better 
begin rather soon, I dare say, or he will be too 
much for us! If ever there was a spoiled boy, our 
William is one!” 


CHAPTER II 


COURAGE 

There is more than one kind of courage. Some 
fellows are not at all afraid of a fight, and will take 
and give a good pounding without a murmur, yet 
in the face of ridicule they will back down shame- 
fully. And then there are others who would al- 
most faint at the idea of a fight, but whom no 
amount of ridicule could persuade to turn aside 
from what they wanted to do, or thought they 
should do. It is a lucky boy who has both kinds 
of courage. Harry Lomond, captain of the nine, 
had both kinds. You may be surprised to know it, 
but Willie had a good deal of the second kind. 
Jimmy Fairfax had nT a shred of either, which 
lack he disguised, however, with a great deal of 
bluster and bragging. It is surprising how many 
are deceived by a boy like Jim, and in Craddock 
even some of the larger fellows thought he was a 
good one to let alone. ‘‘Awful scrapper, Jimmy 
is,’^ they would say, one to another. “Did you 


26 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


hear what he did to that tough last week? Why, 
he says he just took him by the neck and — ’’ 
Yes, Jimmy was a terrible fighter, from his own ac- 
count, and though no one had actually seen him 
engaged in one of his famous encounters, they all 
believed in them nevertheless. So you can see 
how it was that Willie, who was a thin, colorless 
boy, with little endurance, was very much afraid 
of the school bully, and yet Fairfax himself would 
not have dared return to school on the very next 
school-day, if he had made such an exhibition of 
himself as had Willie. He could n^t stand being 
made fun of, blusterer though he was, and yet 
Willie, who could go or not go much as he pleased, 
was at school the very next school morning, just 
as though nothing had happened. He hated being 
ridiculed, yet he hated more to show that he was 
afraid of it. 

The boys received him in different manners. 
Some thought he had done remarkably well for 
such a poor skinny dub, while all that others 
could remember was that he lost the game by 
standing still like a dummy, when he should have 
made first base easily. 

It was Mr. Jordan, however, who saved the day 


COURAGE 


27 


for Will. At the opening of the morning session, 
the trainer came before the school and talked to 
the boys concerning the past season, which, after 
all, had been a very creditable one for Craddock, 
the defeats being a very small minority of the 
games. But to the astonishment of all, Mr. Jor- 
dan praised the team which had just gone down 
to defeat. 

want you boys to understand,^’ said he, 
'Hhat I think that one the most successful game 
of the whole season. We lost, of course, but to 
lose by so small a score, under such a heavy 
handicap, is quite as good as winning. The volun- 
teers did wonders. They played up like veterans. 
And don’t you forget that there ’s good stuff in a 
fellow who breaks a bat in half in his very first 
game and sends the ball into the middle of next 
week! I don’t wonder he stood stock still with 
surprise. Some of you fellows would be standing 
there yet ! And even then he lost only by a second. 
So I am proud of the season, Craddock, proud of 
the nine, and proud of the volunteers — every 
one!” 

This pleasant speech lightened the gloom of 
defeat like magic, and the school applauded Mr. 


28 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


Jordan to the echo, and not a few pounded Willie 
on the back and told him he was a ^^good sport/' 
All of which embarrassed and delighted him to 
such an extent that he did n't know which way to 
look, and for once his pale face was red as fire. 
Indeed, the whole school seemed to have changed 
its attitude toward Will, with the exception, of 
course, of Mr. James Fairfax, who was not only 
astonished beyond words at the tiu*n affairs had 
taken, but who vowed to himself that he 'd show 
that bony specimen a thing or two before the 
day was over. In fact, he whispered as much 
in Willie's ear, when the boys were dismissed from 
the assembly, and the great consolation that it 
was the last day of school did not make up to 
Willie for the alarm he now felt. He was going 
to ^^get it," and he knew it. It had happened too 
many times in the past to admit of any doubt in 
the matter. 

Willie was to have his full share of trials that 
day, for as it was the last session of the school- 
year, the boys were to be told who had passed" 
and so had been promoted, and who had ‘^flunked " 
and so had been left down. He was quite a little 
worried about it, for he was well aware that he had 


COURAGE 


29 


not done his duty at all, and that it was only the 
sly helping of some classmates that had gotten 
him along thus far. And yet there was no boy in 
his class better able to stand high, and Willie also 
knew this, and so he felt a good deal ashamed of 
himself ; and yet — well, he had never known 
what it was to really work in his life, he had never 
had to, and it was impossible, of course, to manage 
stiff algebra and Latin lessons without working — 
or cribbing. So, having no knowledge of work, 
he was forced into the second way of getting 
through,’’ and being really quite clever, he actu- 
ally did ^^get through” far more often than he 
should, and this morning was no exception to the 
rule. His name was given out among those who 
had passed, and the consolation this afforded 
him hardly made up for the fact that he did 
so as a 'Hail-ender,” with no margin to spare 
at all. 

Right behind him was the desk of Johnny War- 
field, one of the boys who had failed to pass. 
Johnny had his head down on his desk, and seemed 
to be crying quietly to himself. Johnny’s hard 
luck and evident sorrow gave Willie several 
twinges of conscience. If there ever was a hard- 


30 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

working boy, and an honest one, that was Johnny 
Warfield. He put an immense amount of time on 
his work, and yet never seemed to accomplish 
anything. He was bright enough, but the fact 
was that he really did not know how to study, so 
that his efforts were largely wasted. Never be- 
fore had Willie been so mortified at himself. Never 
before had he seemed to realize just where he stood 
in comparison with the other fellows. But the 
unusual experience of being in a kind of popular 
favor seemed to have broadened his view-point 
marvelously, and though at first he had had a 
feeling of relief when he knew he had passed, that 
feeling gradually left him, and in its place came the 
consciousness that Johnny Warfield had a much 
better right to be advanced than he had. If this 
were true, then it also followed that if Johnny 
Warfield were left down, he should have been left 
down, too, for he deserved it much more than did 
Johnny. This was a very new feeling for Willie, 
and it worried him a good deal. He looked back 
at Johnny a couple of times, and each time saw 
him still with head down and with face in his 
hands. ‘Ht must be awful,^' thought Willie, “to 
work so hard for a thing and then lose it. He 


COVRAGE 


31 


knows I crib, too, and that I don^t deserve to pass 
half as much as he does/’ Finally, he could stand 
it no longer, so he turned around to Johnny and 
whispered — 

'^Gee, it ’s hard luck, John. You sure did work 
hard for it. Maybe there ’s a mistake somewhere. 
Maybe they did n’t count up right.’^ 

'^Oh, I guess they counted right,” came a muf- 
fled voice, ^^I’m a dumb dub anyway — but I 
hate to go home an’ tell ’em about it.” 

‘^Why don’t you go down, when we ’re dis- 
missed, and see Mr. Willard? I bet he could fix 
it up and give you another chance on an exam or 
two.” 

Maybe he will — I’ll ask him. You’re a 
good fellow — Liz — William.” And Johnny 
raised a rather red face, and began to pick up 
heart. 

No one had ever called Willie a ^^good fellow” 
before. So he became quite excited about Johnny’s 
hard fortune. ^^You know well enough,” said he 
to Johnny, ^4f I pass and get up, you deserve to 
twice as much as I do, and if you ’re left down, I 
should be left down twice as sure. I ’ll tell old 
Willard so, too, if you don’t look out.” 


32 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


Johnny was so surprised at this aspect of Willie’s 
character that he was on the point of making some 
astonished exclamation, when order was called 
by the master in charge of the room, who was 
ending up the term’s work. 

When the end came, and the boys, with bundles 
of books under their arms, were dismissed for the 
summer, Willie, forgetting all about Fairfax and 
his threats, went down with Johnny to the office 
of Mr. Willard, the head-master. Mr. Willard 
was shaking hands with a number of boys, so that 
Johnny and Will had to wait a little while in the 
office. During this little time the two boys be- 
came quite confidential, so that Willie learned 
how much of a struggle it meant for Johnny’s 
parents to send him to this expensive school, and 
how interested they were in all his work. Tears 
came again into the boy’s eyes when he told Willie 
how badly ^^his folks” would feel at his failure. 
They would try not to show it, too, and that 
would only make matters worse. 

As Willie listened he also wondered. His own 
mother always seemed interested in his reports, 
but she never cared a great deal about his grades, 
or his passing.” Her greatest fear was that he 


COURAGE 


33 


might overwork himself! He chuckled grimly at 
the thought. Just then Mr. Willard came in. 

^^Come in to shake hands and say ^good-by/ 
boys? said he, genially. 

'^N-no, not exactly — yet,^^ said Johnny, dubi- 
ously, with his eyes on the floor. — I Ve been 
left down, and I wanted to know if I couldn’t 
have another chance — I think I could pass that 
algebra anyway.” 

’m afraid you ’re asking too much, Warfield,” 
said the head-master, kindly enough. '^But you 
know what would happen if every boy was given 
another chance. It would keep us busy all sum- 
mer, and then some would not work so well, if 
they thought that second chances were coming to 
them. I suppose you passed. Van Lennep, did n’t 
you?” 

^^Yes, sir,” answered Willie. 

There, you see,” said Mr. Willard to Johnny. 
'‘It would not be fair to Van Lennep, and boys 
like him, who work hard and are promoted, if 
others could get up with them by taking more 
chances at it.” 

To his own surprise, Willie spoke up indig- 
nantly. “Work as hard as I do, sir!” he ex- 


34 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

claimed. ‘^Why, I never work a bit, just skim 
along, and Johnny works all the time. I ^d go 
crazy if I worked as hard as Johnny does. I don^t 
think I ever worked in my life. If I passed, 
Johnny should pass too, for he worked ten times 
as hard for it as I did. If he is left down, then 
I ^11 stay down, too, for it is n^t fair, sir.^^ He 
stopped, breathless, while Johnny stared as though 
he could hardly believe his ears. 

^^But I don^t quite understand,’^ said Mr. Wil- 
lard. ^Hf you never worked, how did you get a 
large enough term average to go up?” 

— I cribbed, sir,” said Willie, shamefacedly, 
cribbed all year, and last year, too. Really, I 
don’t deserve to go up, if Johnny don’t.” 

^^Well, you are a pair, you two,” said Mr. Wil- 
lard, while to himself he thought, “If VanLennep’s 
cribbed like that, it ’s the school’s fault, and if 
Warfield works so hard without getting there, 
that ’s the school’s fault, too. I ’ll make a note 
of them and see that they ’re given special atten- 
tion next year. Some teachers need a jogging up ! ” 
Then he looked at the doleful boys and smiled 
broadly. 

“Very decent thing of you. Van Lennep, to 


COURAGE 


35 


speak up as you have, and I glad, Warfield, 
that you came in here to talk things over. Now, 
both you boys, go off and have a good summer, and 
see to it, next fall. Van Lennep, that you do a 
man’s work, with no dishonest cribbing, and as 
for you, Warfield, you will be advanced with the 
rest, and I ’ll see to it that you are shown how to 
work to more advantage. Good-by, boys — a 
pleasant summer!” He shook their hands heart- 
ily, and before they knew it, they were out in the 
corridor, speechless with joy. 

The first thing Willie knew his new friend was 
almost hugging him. You did it for me!” cried 
Johony. “You know you did. I’ll never forget 
it as long as I live. And is n’t Willard the best 
man in the world?” And little Warfield, whose 
head came about to Willie’s shoulder, went into 
rhapsodies over the whole affair, as they went 
down-stairs to the cloak-room, to get their hats. 

Willie had never felt so really satisfied with him- 
self in his life, for not only had the attitude of his 
schoolmates been changed toward him, but he 
had just done a very manly thing, had been 
praised by the head-master for it, and further- 
more he had actually taken another boy under 


36 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


his wing, so to speak, all of which gave him an un- 
utterable satisfaction. But his satisfaction van- 
ished in just about two seconds. Though he had 
forgotten all about Jinuny Fairfax, that gentleman 
had not in the least forgotten about him, so that 
Willie found the bully, with two or three boon com- 
panions, waiting for him in the cloak-room, which 
was nearly deserted by this time. 

^Wery careless of you, Elizabeth, to keep us 
waiting in suspense so long,’’ began Fairfax, with 
a sneer, as Willie came into the room. Guess 
you thought I ’d get tired waiting for you, huh? 
Nay, nay, Pauline!” and he stepped forward and 
caught Willie by the collar. 

Frightened, and furious at himself for being 
frightened, Willie gave a violent pull to get away, 
and failed, as he had often failed before. 

^^Why can’t you let a fellow alone, Jimmy?” he 
said; never do anything to you.” 

'‘You don’t, hey, you don’t? Haven’t you 
just gone and went and lost a game for us, and 
gotten so stuck-up over it that it ’s enough to 
make you sick? ” 

Johnny Warfield, who had said nothing till this 
time, suddenly spoke up. "Nice one to talk, you 


COURAGE 


37 


are, Jim Fairfax. You never hurt yourself trying 
for any athletics except eating peanuts on the 
grand-stand, and walking up and down in front 
of it. Pooh!^’ Even Jimmy’s friends had to 
chuckle at this. 

“What ’s that to you, little knee-high-to-a- 
grasshopper?” Jimmy asked, angrily. “Suppose 
you trot along home and tend to your own affairs, 
if you Ve got any. If you don’t, you ’ll likely get 
annoyed, like this,” and he boxed Willie’s ear 
sharply. 

In reply, anxious to help his new friend, Johnny 
flew at Fairfax like a little fury, and for the moment 
the latter, who was really quite a coward, was 
appalled, let go of Willie, and tried to defend him- 
self. But the odds were too great, for Jim was 
really a big, heavy fellow, and Johnny fell back in 
a moment, beaten, but still pugnacious. In the 
meantime Willie had made a bolt for the door, but 
one of the other boys had caught him, and now 
he was turned over to Fairfax, whose anger had 
become thoroughly aroused. He began shaking 
Willie as a terrier does a rat, and Johnny suddenly 
turned and ran quickly from the room. 

There is no need to describe what happened to 


38 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

Willie in the next few minutes, but when the jani- 
tor hurried in, he was lying on the floor, half- 
sobbing, holding a hand over a badly swollen eye. 

About a half-hour after the janitor’s timely 
arrival, Willie was walking slowly home, with his 
books under his arm. His head hung, and one 
eye was visibly becoming black. His usually 
spotless clothes and linen were dusty and mussed, 
even his usual assumed jauntiness was gone. 

As he walked he thought over the happenings of 
the last few days. Some things were very pleas- 
ant to think about. Yet the friendship of the ma- 
jority of the boys, and particularly of John War- 
field, not to speak of the praise of Mr. Willard, was 
not nearly a compensation for the way he had 
behaved before Fairfax and the latter’s compan- 
ions. He had been a coward and had seen a smaller 
fellow fight for him, and he had been still more of a 
coward in letting himself be beaten almost with- 
out a struggle. He hated himself for his cowardice 
more than ever before, and he gritted his teeth at 
the memory of how the boys had laughed when 
Jimmy knocked him down. Indeed, the truth of 
the matter was that Willie, for the first time, was 
beginning to see himself as the other fellows saw 


COURAGE 


39 


him, and the picture was not a satisfying one at 
all. The result was that, along with his feeling of 
. shame, came another, which caused the beginning 
of a resolution to utilize the coming smnmer, and 
return to Craddock a very different boy from what 
he had been when he left. 

Thinking in this manner, as he was walking 
home, he almost ran over a little street urchin 
who was walking in the opposite direction, crying 
bitterly. As the ragged youngster started to walk 
around Willie, the latter caught a glimpse of a red 
face and a badly discolored eye. A kind of 
humorous fellow feeling sprang up for the little 
tough at once. ^^What ’s the matter, fellow?’’ he 
asked, ''some boy been hitting you?” 

The boy stopped and looked up at Willie and 
noticed the latter’s similar decoration. The snif- 
fling stopped like magic, and the boy grinned. 

"Say, Cully,” said he, "they been a-hanging one 
on you, too, have n’t they!” Seeing another boy 
in the same fix helped a lot. 

"Sure,” said Willie, sheepishly, "they hung one 
on me, too.” 

"Was it a big fellow did it?” 

"Pretty big. Who did it to you?” 


40 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

‘^Huh, it took a whole gang of ’em. If I ever 
git that there Felix Maloney by hisself won’t I 
pound him? Oh no!” And the little tough 
shook a grimy fist in the direction from which he 
had come. Then each boy went his own way 
again, each feeling a little better. But a thought 
was gradually forcing its way into Willie’s mind, 
and that was that every boy must expect to fight 
his own battles, in this world, and that if he waits 
for some one else to fight them for him, he is likely 
to suffer unpleasant consequences. This was 
something that he evidently had to do himself, 
something that neither his mother, nor his father, 
nor his valet, nor all his money could do for him. 
With this excellent conclusion arrived at, he reached 
the great entrance of his home and rang the door- 
bell. 


CHAPTER III 


MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 

'^CoME here, sir!^’ 

Willie, who had tried to pass the door of his 
father^s study without being seen, hesitated a 
moment, and then, unwillingly enough, entered 
the room. He would have given a good deal to 
have escaped his father’s eyes at that moment. 

^^What do you want?” asked Willie, impolitely, 
from half-way across the room. 

'^Come here, sir,” repeated Mr. Van Lennep, 
coldly. The boy went slowly up to the table be- 
side which his father was seated. He put his 
school-books on the table and turned to Mr. Van 
Lennep, who was watching him narrowly. 

Where did you get that black eye?” 

^^Oh, had a scrap with a couple of big fellows,” 
replied Willie, trying to pass the matter off easily. 

guess I gave them as good as I got.” Willie 
had few ideas, you see, concerning the beauty of 
truth. 


42 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

Mr. Van Lennep grunted. Willie’s black hair 
was standing up like porcupine quills, instead of 
being plastered down flat as it usually was. Then 
there was a broad smudge of dirt across his cheek, 
his collar was visibly mussed, and his clothes were 
very dusty. All this was most unusual, for Willie 
was inclined to be rather fussy about his clothes, 
too much so by far. So Mr. Van Lennep gave a 
grim chuckle to himself at the boy’s boast, for it 
was only too evident what kind of a fight Willie 
had given the other fellows. He had been well 
thrashed, if ever a boy had. 

^^So you gave them as good as you got, did you?” 
inquired his father, with a most embarrassing 
smile. Willie became the sullen, spoiled boy that 
he had always been up to a couple of days before. 
His blossoming manliness seemed to go under a 
shadow. 

^^Sure I did,” he grumbled, looking down, and 
tracing designs upon the floor with his foot. 

‘‘Just to see what it is like,” replied Mr. Van 
Lennep, “just for pleasant variety, you know, 
why don’t you try telling the truth?” 

Willie turned fiery red, said something about 
wanting to see his mother, and walked quickly from 


MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 43 


the room, not a bit pleased with himself, either. 
Why had n^t he spoken openly to his father, as 
Johnny Warfield would have done, or perhaps even 
that little street tough? He felt that his new reso- 
lutions would not amount to much at this rate. 
However, as his eye was quite painful, he hurried 
off to his mother, sure of sympathy and prompt 
treatment. 

His father looked after him thoughtfully. Then 
his glance fell upon the school-books that had been 
left upon the table. Curiously he picked one up — 
it happened to be a Cicero’^ — but he frowned 
deeply upon opening it, for under each line of 
Latin was a line of English. ‘^Uses a crib,’’ said 
he to himself. ^^Upon my soul, what kind of a boy 
is this that I am bringing up! Smokes cigarettes, 
too, no doubt of that, and as for being spoiled — ” 
and here he stopped to think, for, truth to tell, if 
the boy was spoiled, whose fault was it? 

Mr. Van Lennep had been thinking a good deal 
about this boy, lately, and he had begun to ob- 
serve him, perhaps for the first time, and what he 
saw did not please him, as you may imagine. And 
then Willie was thin, round-shouldered, and had a 
pasty complexion. Indeed, he did not amount to 


44 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


much as a boy, on the surface, at all events, and 
this was his father^s bitter conclusion, as he sat in 
the study. 

he goes on like this,’' continued Mr. Van 
Lennep to himself, ‘^he will certainly become as 
worthless a young snob as the sun ever shone upon. 
Partly my own fault, too, no doubt. Something 
must be done, something radical, and perhaps 
severe, that will show him up to himself, and maybe, 
by knocking some of this nonsense out, we can 
manage to get a little good sense in. He has no 
idea of manliness. Goodness! when I was his 
age I was earning my living, and was proud of it, 
too. I believe this young prig would faint away 
at the very idea of doing one day’s honest work. 
Yes, sir. Something must be done, and that right 
away. But what?” Mr. Van Lennep stared 
vacantly into space, and, as he stared, there came 
a slow smile to his lips, a smile that gradually 
grew broader and broader, until suddenly he threw 
back his head and gave a great hearty laugh, to 
the vast surprise of his wife, who entered the room 
that moment. 

Mercy, John!” exclaimed she, wonder at 
you, laughing like that, when your poor, delicate 


MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 45 


son comes home almost beaten to death by a lot of 
hoodlums. Poor dear! I think you are hard on 
the boy, John. Remember, you were one your- 
self, once.’’ 

^^Sure enough, so I was!” laughed Mr. Van 
Lennep, who became more and more good- 
humored as his plan matured in his head. ^^And I 
was n’t such a poor, colorless, miserable chap as 
our Willie, either. But we ’ll make a man of him 
yet, so we will. There, mother, do not say a word, 
please, for I know already what you wish to say 
about the boy’s being a little angel, a poor martyr, 
abused by all the world, and even by his own 
father. Never mind, I am going to make amends 
to Willie, see if I don’t. I ’ll treat him square for 
the first time in my life, I ’ll give you my word 
on it.” 

Mrs. Van Lennep, half appeased, half dubious, 
then left him, upon which he rang for his secretary. 

Frank,” said he to that young man, when he 
appeared, kindly telephone for Captain Seawell; 
he should be down around the office about this 
time for orders. Tell him I want to see him per- 
sonally. Dare say the old man will be surprised.” 

In about half an hour Captain Seawell, a regular 


46 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


old “salt/^ arrived, vastly astonished, and far 
from being at ease in so magnificent a house, until 
he had spoken with Mr. Van Lennep a few minutes, 
after which he felt perfectly at home, for the 
simple reason that Mr. Van Lennep himself was 
at home with all kinds of men. 

I will not detail their conversation to you. I 
will only say that when the bluff old captain left, 
he held out a hand enormous in size, and shook that 
of his employer with right good will. ^11 do my 
best, sir, you can caount on me! Us Gloucester 
folks never fergit a kindness, and you Ve been 
good to me and mine.^^ Then the captain stamped 
away, and for half an hour astonished people in 
the streets by chuckling and snorting violently 
every little while. 

Mr. Van Lennep did a little chuckling on his 
own account, after the captain had gone, and then 
again called for his secretary. The two men put 
their heads together for nearly an hour, and then 
Frank left the house, to run mysterious errands in 
queer parts of the city. And all this time Willie, 
looking dismal enough, was lying on a comfort- 
able divan, with a cooling application over his 
left eye. 


MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 47 

The next morning, for a wonder, Willie was 
down to breakfast in time to eat with his parents. 
For a while their conversation was about nothing 
in particular, and then, looking pleasantly at his 
son, Mr. Van Lennep said: 

“It ^s your vacation, now, is nT it? Well, now 
comes the problem. What would you like to do 
this summer? A few days ago I think you said 
something about yachting.’^ 

“Mercy, JohnP^ exclaimed Mrs. Van Lennep 

— and “Mercy, John^’ was her usual expression 

— “for pity^s sake donT give the boy any idea like 
that. These boats are always being wrecked, or up- 
set, or blown up, or something, and Willie would 
get drowned!^' 

“But Harry Lomond is going yachting, this 
summer, and so are the Dudley-Brown boys,^’ 
cried Willie himself, “and if they can go — 

“True enough, sonny,^^ said the father, “we canT 
let them get ahead of us just because they will be- 
long to the Four Hundred some day.’^ 

Mrs. Van Lennep wilted at those names, but 
still she was very timid about it. However, her 
husband said that perhaps Willie would not care 
so much about it after all, and it might be that if 


48 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

he could really see a yacht, he would give up the 
idea. “Nothing like seeing for yourself, said he. 
“To tell the truth, he continued, “I actually own 
quite a good boat, now, but I am not sure that 
Willie would like it. Of course he can go and look 
it over, before we decide. How about it, Will?^’ 
he asked pleasantly. 

“Sure thing, said Willie, “only I donT want 
one of those old-fashioned tubs — an old left-over, 
you know.^^ Willie^s assurance was coming back 
to him, you observe. 

“Well, Frank knows where it is,^^ said his father, 
“and he can take you there this morning; he is go- 
ing there on an errand anyway.’^ 

Willie grumbled something about being able to 
go about town by himself. 

“To be sure he can,” his mother agreed, afraid 
to have her son thought babyish. 

“Well,” said Mr. Van Lennep, smiling to himself, 
“there are quite a few tough characters in that 
neighborhood. Of course I know that Willie does nT 
mind fighting” — he said this very seriously — 
“but just the same, I donT want my son to be 
seen fighting in the streets. Frank had better go, 
I think.” 


MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 49 


Willie at once agreed that he liked Frank any- 
way, and his mother was sure that not only Frank 
had better go, but the butler too ! 

So, in a little while, they started off, riding first 
on the elevated, and then walking through odd, 
smelly streets. Before long Willie produced his 
cigarettes, looking at the secretary from the corner 
of his eyes. guess I can take a puff or two 
without your saying anything, can^t I? Because 
you would n^t like me to tell the office people that 
you write letters to a Miss Violet Weldon twice a 
day, now, would you?’^ 

To tell the truth, that secretary blushed quite 
red for a moment, then he laughed. 

^^All right, it ^s a bargain,’^ laughed he, 
wonT squeal.’^ 

^^Have one,^^ said the boy, offering the box. 

''No thank you, donT indulge.^^ 

"You donT know what you miss,’^ said the boy, 
puffing manfully, and with such a superior air 
that the secretary almost burst with suppressed 
emotion. 

It was not a long journey, and in a compara- 
tively short time they were down near the water, 
where docks extended out into the bay on either 


50 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


hand, as far as one could see, all lively with the 
commerce of ^ a great city. 

Finally the pair stopped before a huge ware- 
house, over the roof of which the tops of three 
masts were visible. They alighted and entered 
the building, where they seemed to be expected, 
for they were met by smiles on all sides, and soon 
passed out through another door to the dock 
beyond. 

At the dock, and held by a single hauser, was a 
large, three-masted schooner. A diminutive tug- 
boat was in attendance, seemingly ready to strain 
upon a heavy cable that connected it to her bow. 

Willie looked at the ship in deep disgust. 

^^The old man’s batty,” said he. “He don’t 
know a yacht from a gravy boat, an’ he thinks 
he ’s no end smart, too. Humph — nasty old 
tub!” And in high scorn he turned his back 
to it. 

“Come, now, don’t be too hasty,” said his com- 
panion, “let ’s go on board anyway, so you can 
tell your father that you at least examined the 
boat; besides, I have a message for the captain.” 

Just then the worthy last mentioned came out 
of the cabin and saw them. He smiled from ear 


MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 51 

to ear and roared out a hearty '^Good morning! 
Glad to see yer! Come right aboard, do!’^ The 
men working about the ship stopped a moment 
to grin, and so did the men on the dock, though 
Willie never noticed. He glumly moved forward 
and stood on the edge of the dock, looking down 
on the deck of the ship, which the high tide 
brought nearly as high as the dock itself. 

^^Good morning, Mr. Parker,’^ said the cap- 
tain to the secretary. ‘'Got sumpthin^ fer me, 
havenT ye? Well, come aboard man, do.’^ So 
Mr. Parker jumped down upon the deck of the 
schooner, and Willie followed clumsily and stood 
staring about him with visible disgust. 

“Gee, what a smell! was his comment to his 
companion. 

“Now I tell ye, Mr. Van Lennep,^^ said the 
captain to Willie, who liked being called ‘mister,’ 

I must talk some business to Mr. Parker here. 
But my mate will show ye about, and show ye 
the stuffed mongoose I have in my cabin. Queer 
beast, sir, is a mongoose. Hi, Rodgers! come 
a-here and meet Mr. Van Lennep, the owner’s son, 
ye know.” 

The big mate came forward, a stout, good- 


52 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


natured man, with a red face and almost bald 
head. He held out his hand, which Willie took 
limply, and said ^^Howdy,^’ to which Willie said 
nothing at all. 

'^Show him about, Rodgers, show him about. 
Take him down in the cabin and show him that 
there mongoose, do.’^ 

'^Ay, ay, sir,^’ said Rodgers; then to Willie, 
^‘Come right along, sir, and I ^11 show ye what 
we Ve got.’’ 

Willie did not care much about it, but as Mr. 
Parker began talking business with the captain, 
there seemed nothing else to do to pass away the 
time, so he followed Rodgers about the deck, and 
at last descended with him into the cabin. At 
once the deck became the scene of quiet activity, 
and Mr. Parker, giving a white envelope to Cap- 
tain Seawell, leaped up to the dock. 

Down in the cabin Willie was shown how its 
tenants lived, and was just going to look at that 
blessed mongoose when, from a port, he saw the 
timbers of the dock going slowly by, and at once 
realized that the boat was in motion. With a 
muttered word or two he sprang up the compan- 
ion way and ran to the side, only to find that at 


MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 53 


least ten feet of water was between the schooner 
and the dock, and that the puffing tugboat was 
making the breech wider and wider. On the dock 
was the secretary, sitting on a stanchion as coolly as 
you please, looking not the least excited, and 
quite a few men on the dock seemed to be watch- 
ing them as though something pleasant were 
going on. So he turned to the captain, who was 
standing near by, and said, unexcitedly enough, 

^^What ’s going on? Changing your position?” 

'^Dear me, yes,” said Captain Seawell, ^Hhat ^s 
just what we ^re a-doin^ changin’ our position. 
We ’re a-changin’ of it from Noo York to some- 
wheres on the Maine coast. Do ye like the sea, 
now? Tell me, do.” 

A couple of the men chuckled, and then, at an 
order, began raising the great sails, for they were 
well out of the dock, by this time. 

Willie became suddenly furious. 

^^Look here, now, if this is a joke, it ’s a darn 
poor joke. I want to be taken right back to that 
dock, and no more fooling, either.” 

‘‘Now that do be strange,” said Captain Sea- 
well, mildly, “it do, indeed; besides, fer a boy 
what ’s yet in short pants, ye do talk mighty pert.” 


54 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

The dock was going rapidly away, as the sails 
caught the wind, and the tug finally cast loose 
from them, and went puffing importantly up the 
river. There was a strange, terrible sinking in 
Willie^s heart, when he saw all this, but his rage 
got ahead again. 

^'Look here!’’ he cried to the captain, want 
you to know that I don’t think this is funny at 
all. If you think I enjoy it you must be an old 
fool. Now I want to get back right away, I tell 
you, right away!” And he stamped his foot, more 
enraged than ever to see that the captain was n’t 
the least impressed. 

‘‘Do tell!” said the captain, mildly. 

Willie was almost in tears of mingled anger 
and dismay. ^^Put me back, put me back!” he 
cried, not at all caring what an exhibition he was 
making of himself, ^^Do you think my old man ’ll 
stand for this? He ’ll give you the sack, he will. 
You must be crazy!” 

‘‘Do tell,” said the captain, faintly, staring out 
of a pair of round, twinkling blue eyes, and tak- 
ing an envelope from his pocket. 

“Now looky here,” said he, “young man, looky 
here; now sposin’ ye read what ’s in this here 


MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 55 


letter. Them my orders from the owner, and 
what he says goes.’^ He handed Willy the letter, 
and this is what he read, with a sinking of the 
heart that can well be imagined: — 

My dear Captain Seawell: — 

My son will be brought to you by my secretary. The boy 
lacks courage, honor, and many other necessary qualities. I 
think a little ocean and a little pine woods would work won- 
ders. Do whatever you think right with him, and when you 
reach Falmouth hand him over to Scotty, who will be noti- 
fied by mail of his coming. I hope the boy will find his sum- 
mer a valuable one. 

Yours truly, 

John H. Van Lennep. 

Willie read the letter two or three times, only 
half comprehendingly, but when its full import 
dawned upon him, he suddenly tore it to bits and 
threw them into the captain^s impassive face, and 
then rushed to the rail with an idea of jumping 
over and swimming back. But the dock was a 
long way off, and the shore was not near, and then 
he was not a good swimmer. 

“Cold day for a swim,’’ remarked the captain, 
“though the sharks don’t mind.” 

Now any boy who had the least sense of manli- 
ness, would have put a good face on it, and would 
have endeavored to get as much pleasure out of 


56 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

the adventure as possible. But Willie had been 
petted all his life, and as for manliness, he had 
not very much of it. So he cried before them all 
like a five-year-old with a bad temper. He con- 
tinued to insult the captain with all the mean 
and ugly names he could think of, and ceased 
only when the mate sent a bucket-full of sea- 
water over him, which left him drenched and 
speechless. The captain then became a man 
seemingly of absolute authority, whose word 
was not to be disobeyed for a second. In a tone 
that admitted of no questioning, he ordered 
Willie below at once, telling him to change his 
clothes for others he would find in his cabin, 
which place a man would point out to him. Me- 
chanically he followed one of the sailors, and, in 
his diminutive bunk, removed his wet garments, 
putting on others that were given him. Then 
suddenly turning to his bed, he lay face down on 
the rough pillow, and sobbed undisturbed. And 
there we will leave him for a while. 

The news was broken very gently to Mrs. Van 
Lennep, and she wept almost as much as did 
Willie, at first. But finally the mother became 
more calm, and, being really a very sensible 



The mate sent <a bueket-full of sea water over him. 

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MR. VAN LENNEP MAKES UP HIS MIND 57 

woman at heart, she came to think not so badly 
of the project as at first. Indeed, it was not long 
before she actually found life a little more pleas- 
ant than before, and came to think the idea a 
very brilliant one for all concerned. No doubt 
the boy had worried her more than she knew. 

^^The only thing about it I don’t like,” said 
Mr. Van Lennep, when talking it over, '^is that 
I did not send him away more openly, and had to 
trick the boy. But I dare say it was for the best, 
for a rude awakening is just what he needs, and I 
do hope and pray that he will be the better for 
this bitter experience. It will probably either 
make or mar him once for all. We must take the 
risk. I think it will make him!” 


CHAPTER IV 


WHAT THE OCEAN BEGAN 

We left Willie sobbing in his narrow bunk, which 
was tucked away in a little space aft by the cap- 
tain^s cabin. But no one can cry forever, no 
matter how angry and frightened one is, so finally 
he turned over on his back, and rubbing his 
eyes, began looking disconsolately about him. 

He saw a very narrow room lighted by means 
of a small round port window, which did not let 
in a great deal of the sunlight that was so plenti- 
ful outside. He seemed to be lying on a kind of 
mattressed shelf, and another similar shelf hung 
directly over him. Willie felt like a sardine. On 
the wooden wall opposite the two berths was a 
line of hooks, upon which an array of tar-smelling 
garments was hanging, in fact, slightly swinging 
with the gentle roll of the ship, for the lower bay 
and the sea were quite smooth, and they were 
going before the wind. 

On the floor were two chests, one closed and 


WHAT THE OCEAN BEGAN 


59 


the other open, and it was from the latter that he 
had taken his new clothes, which consisted mostly 
of a pair of blue over-alls and a flannel shirt. 
There was a pair of heavy shoes in the chest, and 
a pair of high rubber boots, and some oilskins as 
smelly as those hanging on the wall. He could 
see all these from his bunk. What was beneath 
them in the chest he neither knew nor cared. 
There was nothing else worthy of notice in the 
cabin except a gently swinging, diminutive oil 
lamp, which hung from the ceiling. 

Willie took so little comfort in what he saw 
that he gave a grunt of disgust and covered his 
eyes with his arms, and did not remove the latter 
when he heard a light step come quickly into the 
cabin. Some one rummaged about one of the 
chests, and then seemed to come to his berth and 
look at him. Willie had just decided to pay no 
attention to this impertinent person, when the 
latter, in a cheery, pleasant voice, unmistakably 
that of a boy, said to him, sympathetically: 

^^What ^s doin^, kiddo? Feel sick? 

Willie took away his arms, and opening his 
eyes, saw a boy of about his own age, clothed 
much as he was, and barefooted. This boy had 


60 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

the roundest, brownest face you ever saw, and a 
grin that would have done you good to see. He 
carried himself well, this same boy, and looked 
directly at you from a bright pair of gray eyes, 
and seemed so strong and manly that Willie felt 
a little shame for the first time, and so attempted 
to grin back, sitting up as he did so, and bump- 
ing his head on the berth above, at which the 
strange boy laughed so contagiously that Willie 
had to laugh despite himself. 

^^Not used to them there things, I guess, said 
the boy. 

^^No,” replied Willie, ^^and don^t want to be, 
either.’^ 

Looks like you can^t help yourself for a while, 
though. Have n’t you been on a boat before? ” 

‘‘No, not often, I hate the water.” 

“Ho, I guess you ’re in for it, then, for we ’re 
going to sail over some considerable water before 
you can touch land again. We might just as well 
get acquainted, for we ’re goin’ to be cabin mates 
here. That ’s my berth over yours. Had to get 
out of my old bed on account of you, too, but I 
don’t care. We ’re going to be ship’s boys to- 
gether, so I ’ll tell you that my name ’s John 


WHAT THE OCEAN BEGAN 


61 


Harding, and the fellers of course call me ‘Jack/ 
What ^s your first name? I know your last, of 
course/’ 

Now Willie had always been proud of his full 
name, so he gave it all. 

“If you want to know my name,” said he, 
“it ’s William Algernon Charles Van Lennep.” 

“Gee! What a Sam Hill of a name! Don’t it 
keep ye awake o’ nights afraid ye might ferget it? 
What is it? William Algernon — say, Bo, I 
guess that ‘Bill’ will do, though, fer me, if you 
don’t mind, hum?” 

Willie was delighted to be called Bill.” He was 
more than thankful that this boy had not started 
on Willie ” and almost wanted to shake hands 
with him. And as Jack had christened him “ Bill,” 
we will call him by that name too, as it is an in- 
finitely more manly one than Willie.” 

“Sure thing,” said he, “call me Bill if you like,” 
and he scrambled out of his bunk and took a 
peep from the port-hole. The low-lying land, 
bathed in the midday sun, was probably five 
miles away. The sky was clear and blue, which 
made the water blue and sparkling. But Bill 
saw no beauty in the sight, indeed it made him 


62 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


feel more depressed and forlorn than he had ever 
felt in his life. And then you must remember 
that he was very angry at the trick that had been 
played upon him. And fortunately, or this tale 
would never have been told, under all his bad 
characteristics there was really a latent strength, 
that had never been developed, a strength in- 
herited from a father who had struggled long and 
successfully against the world. That strength 
came a little to Bilks rescue now, and he thought 
to himself, ^^What a ninny I am! This blame 
boat belongs to Dad, and these are his men, so 
it ^s funny if I canT get about what I want till 
we hit the shore. And then out I go!^^ 

First of all, he did nT like his cabin; it was too 
dark, and didnT smell good. 

Where ^s the captain, Jack?^’ he asked. 

'^By the wheel, I guess, said Jack, who had 
been rummaging in his chest. 

'^Well, I want to see him. I wonder where the 
deuce they Ve taken my shoes. And he began 
looking about the cabin for them, scorning the 
heavy ones in his chest. 

^^Us cabin boys donT use shoes much, lessen 
it ^s wet weather. The mate says it ^s good for 


WHAT THE OCEAN BEGAN 


63 


boys to go barefoot. An^ it ain't bad, neither, so 
don't you care." 

Bill looked down at his own bare feet with dis- 
gust. If they had been as brown as Jack's he 
would not have minded so much. 

‘‘Well, here goes, feet or no feet," said he, and 
after rolling up his trousers about six inches, 
after the manner of Jack's, he climbed to the 
deck and made his way aft to where he saw the 
captain talking to the helmsman, who was none 
other than the big, red-faced mate. 

Captain Seawell smiled encouragingly. 

“Naow, that 's what I call shipshape, so it is. 
We 've got to put some backbone on ye, though, 
so as ye 'll hold yer head up like a man, and not 
hang it like the lily o' the field that scripture talks 
about. Let 's shake hands on it, an' then ye can 
git Jackie to show ye yer duties. There 's a lot 
o' things fer a boy t' do aboard ship," and he held 
out a great horny hand. 

Thought Bill to himself, “It 's now or never." 

“Look here, captain," said he, pleasantly, but 
with the importance of a son of an owner, “ I 
don't like a bit that cabin I 've got. I guess the 
man gave me the wrong one. If I 've got to go 


64 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


with you, I might just as well be comfortable, so 
I ’d like to have one of the cabins this man showed 
me this morning.’’ 

Mr. Rodgers, the mate, chuckled a little at this, 
and so did the captain, politely, behind his hand. 

We don’t jist naturally lodge ship boys in the 
captain’s cabin,” said the latter worthy. 

Bill became indignant. ^^But I ’m not a plain 
ship boy at all. I did n’t even want to come. 
But you ’re forgetting that I ’m the owner’s son, 
and that you ’re being paid by my dad.” 

Captain Seawell suddenly became very angry. 

'‘Naow jist ye listen, and don’t ye say one word, 
neither — d’ ye hear? It ’s a ship boy ye are, and 
it ’s hke one ye ’ll be treated, an’ it makes no dif- 
frunce t’ me if yer the son of the archangel Michael 
himself.” 

Bill tried to speak. 

‘‘Not one word!” exclaimed the captain, “not 
one! Or first thing ye know sump thin’ ’ll happen 
that should ’a’ happened t’ ye long ago. Now git 
along after Jack, and learn yer duties, and be a 
good boy, an’ we ’ll git along first class. But 
don’t ye fergit as I ’m the boss here, and what I 
says goes!” 


WHAT THE OCEAN BEGAN 


65 


Now Bill was really quite a coward, and he saw, 
too, that bluff and good-natured as the old captain 
probably was, he was not a man to be trifled with, 
much less disobeyed. So, very sullenly, he turned 
and walked forward to what he came to know 
as the galley, where he found Jack busy peeling 
potatoes. 

^^Sit down. Bill, and peel these here ^taters, while 
I git some more an^ another knife. He pushed 
them toward Bill, who promptly turned up his 
nose. 

^^What do you think I am? I^m no kitchen 
boy! Just then an iron hand grasped his collar 
and pulled him to his feet. He was twirled around, 
and found himself face to face with the captain. 
The captain held his shoulders in an iron grip, 
and, to tell the truth, Bill was frightened this 
time for sure. 

This here ^s the last warning fer ye. I Ve been 
good ter ye because ye didn^t know no better. 
Naow git ye busy, or I fll lose my temper, I sure 
will.’^ Then he suddenly* sat Bill down on the deck 
beside the box of potatoes, and did it with no gen- 
tle hand. ^‘Naow git ye busy!^’ he commanded 
once more, '^an^ donT let me hear any more such 


66 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


nonsense/’ Then he stamped aft and descended 
into his own cabin. 

Bill, thoroughly cowed, choked down a sob or 
two, and brushed a few bitter tears from his eyes, 
then pulled the potatoes toward him, and taking 
the knife set clumsily to work, and, truth to say, 
made a very bad job of it, and so Jack .thought, 
when he returned with another mess of those vege- 
tables. Bill was thankful that Jack had missed 
most of the wigging he had received, for the boy 
had gone into the galley just as Bill had been 
jerked to his feet. 

^^Say, Bill,” said Jack, you ’re just about 
murdering them there ’taters. Looky here, do it 
this way,” and he slipped a potato from its skin 
with skilful hands. 

Bill was not in the best of humors, so he said 
gruffly that he knew what he was about, and did n’t 
need advice. When the job was finally done. 
Jack told Bill to take the potatoes into the galley 
and give them to the cook, while he threw the 
peelings overboard. Bill wanted to tell Jack to 
take them down himself, but he saw that the 
mate was watching him, so thought better of it, 
and clumsily carried the heavy bucket of vegeta- 


WHAT THE OCEAN BEGAN 


67 


bles down the few steps that led into the galley. 
Here he found the cook, a big, brawny negro, with 
a white cap on his head. The cook was whistling 
softly to himself when Bill entered, and he con- 
tinued to whistle as he took the bucket from the 
boy, and handed him another one, a large, black, 
sooty one. 

What ^s this for?^’ asked Bill, not at all pleased 
to find himself working for a colored man. But 
the cook seemed unwilling to cease whistling, for 
he made motions with his hands and head, pointing 
from the stove to the bucket, and from the bucket 
down a near-by hatch. 

Bill was bright enough to see what he meant, but 
he pretended to be more dense than he was. 

'^Coal ^s what ah want,’^ said the cook at last, 
breaking away from his music. Git it down thar. 
You am de bosses^ son, I reckon. My sakes! Hit 
sure am a queer job for de bosses’ son! Neberde- 
less, I want dat ’ere coal, so tak de bucket, honey, 
and fill um full for old Sam,” and Sam smiled 
expansively. 

But Bill did n’t want to work for this black man, 
or any other black man. He felt himself much 
above that, and yet he was certainly afraid of the 


68 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


captain. And so he hesitated a minute or two be- 
tween anger and fear, until old Sam lost patience. 
He picked up a heavy poker and hit a table a whack 
with it that made Bill jump, and then he shook it 
at the latter. 

^^Git that ^ere coal, or ah ^11 suah chuck you 
down a’ ter it, ah will, ah dare t^ goodness!’^ He 
looked so threatening that Bill went off with the 
bucket in a hurry, and descending the hatch, found 
a small bin of coal at the bottom. He lost no time 
in filling the bucket and bringing it back to Sam, 
though it was an unconunon and unpleasant exer- 
cise for his thin arms and weak back. Sam was 
whistling again when he returned, and seemed as 
cheerful as ever. In fact he stopped his tune a 
minute or two to smile and to say, ^^Now, that ’s 
right smart, chile, it suhtenly am!^^ Then he 
set about his work and seemed to forget Bilks 
presence. 

The vessel was rolling a little more, now, and 
though Bill had missed dinner by lying in his 
bunk, the odors in the galley did not seem to add 
to his appetite. So he climbed out upon the deck, 
where the fresh air seemed to clear his head in a 
minute. But just then Jack called to him to come 


WHAT THE OCEAN BEGAN 


69 


to his cabin. Unwillingly Bill descended into his 
narrow quarters, and found Jack looking at the 
chest that Bill had left open and in disorder. 

guess you forgot to fix your things, didn^t 
you? ” asked Jack, pointing to the box in question. 

^‘The deuce with it,^’ said Bill, shortly. He was 
not in a good humor. 

^^And I forgot to say,’’ continued Jack, 'Hhat 
the captin don’t stand for no cussin’ here. This 
here ain’t no Newfoundland fishing smack.” 

Bill had been brow-beaten by the captain, and 
by the cook, and in his own father’s ship, too. 
But a ship’s boy was too much. So ^^Mind your 
own business,” says Master William Algernon. 
The result astonished him. Jack sprang at him 
and cuffed both sides of his head alternately. Bill 
actually made an attempt to grab Jack’s arm, but 
was sent spinning against the wall, where he re- 
mained with hanging head protected by his arms. 
He was no match for Jack. 

'^Do you say ^ ’nough ’ now?” asked Jack, threat- 
ening to begin again. 

The only answer was a distinct sniffle. 

^^Say ‘ ’nough’ or you ’ll get it again,” said Jack, 
ferociously. 


70 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


Bill was in no mood for further fighting, so mur- 
mured out a ^^’nough^’ between his sniffles, and 
I will say to Bill’s credit that he did all he could to 
stifle these signs of weakness. 

‘^All right, then,” said Jack in his ordinary 
tone, '4et ’s get to work and make things ship- 
shape. Gee, but you Ve got fine things,” and 
Jack began looking over the things in Bill’s box, 
which was a large one, filled with the results of the 
secretary’s mysterious errands. After he had 
pulled out a fine array of sea-clothes, there ap- 
peared a heavy layer of brown paper, the removal 
of which almost caused Jack to fall backward. 
*^Oh, my eye, would ye look!” he exclaimed, 
staring with all his might. Bill, who had taken 
but a half-hearted interest in these proceedings, 
bent over too, and beheld another set of clothes, 
not sea-clothes, either; but most startling of all 
was the sight of a canvas-covered rifle, a bone- 
handled hunting-knife, and several other articles 
equally foreign to life aboard ship. 

Bill actually felt a glow in his heart when he be- 
held those things, but the garments on the hooks 
were now swinging briskly, and the little hanging 
lamp bobbed from side to side in wide circles. 


WHAT THE OCEAN BEGAN 


71 


Suddenly a terrible feeling came over him, and he 
clutched Jack^s shoulder to keep from falling. 

Jack looked up astonished, but his astonishment 
instantly turned to pity and self-reproach. 

^^By gum!^’ cried Jack, ‘^nice one, I am, stand- 
ing here a-belting you when you were half sick and 
did n^t know what you were doing. Say, I ’m 
mighty sorry With steadying arm he helped 
Bill to the latter^s bunk, and put him into it, and 
high time, too, for if ever there was a sea-sick boy 
that boy was Billy. 

For a while he lay abjectly in his berth, dimly 
watching Jack, who scurried about and soon had 
all Biirs possessions to rights. Then, when a 
sharp whistle sounded above, he said, “Back 
soon again, and ran from the cabin, leaving Bill 
to his sea-sickness and his thoughts. And, sur- 
prising as it may seem, Billy was doing some very 
serious thinking. He wondered why he had been 
put on that rolling schooner, he wondered how it 
was that everyone seemed his superior, and, most 
of all, perhaps, he wondered why it was that Jack, 
who was no older than himself, should be able to 
toss him around so easily. For a while he pondered 
upon all these things, until his sickness gradually 


72 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


became his one absorbing thought, and he felt 
sure that he was going to die, and he did n^t care 
a bit, and hoped it would soon be over and have 
done with it. 

He remembered little of what happened during 
the next twelve or more hours. He knew that it 
grew darker and darker, and that finally Jack 
lighted the swinging lantern and looked after him 
as best he could. And he thought that once, in 
the night, the captain himself came in, patted 
his head, and said he would surely be all right by 
“marning,’^ and last of all, just as day was break- 
ing, despite the plunging of the vessel, he fell 
asleep, and slept right on till midday. 


CHAPTER V 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 

When Billy awoke he lay quietly for a minute, 
wondering where in the world he was, for the over- 
hanging berth was not many inches above his 
nose. Then it all came back to him in a flash. 
No dream, either, for the clothes of the opposite 
wall and the little oil lamp were bobbing serenely 
as ever. He was on a ship, sure enough, and a 
rather lively one at that, for the way she rolled 
and pitched seemed something scandalous to a 
mere land boy. Now and then he would feel his 
side of the vessel sink down, down, as though it 
were never going to stop, and then the water would 
reflect mottled streaks of dancing sunlight in upon 
his ceiling. Then up he would go, until one felt 
that surely the whole concern was about to turn 
upside down, and indeed the ascent seemed to 
stop just in the nick of time to save the ship and 
crew from a most annoying experience. And the 
rolling did all this. 


74 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

The pitching was quite another matter; the 
whole life and energy of the ship seemed to go into 
that, for it would push its sharp bow straight into 
a rolling wall of green, and then, with a burst of 
spray, swing over the long roller, and go sliding 
down a broad slope as though trying to undermine 
the ocean. All this gave Bill a great variety of 
sensations, but you can believe that he was more 
than glad to find that his sickness had gone for 
good, that is, you can believe it if you have ever 
been there yourself. 

Bill lay dreamily gazing about when a dash of 
spray against his diminutive window awakened 
him thoroughly. 

'^No use staying here all day,’^ said he, scram- 
bling from his bedclothes and putting his feet to 
the floor, just as a broad black face was poked in 
at the door. 

‘^Ho, dar!’’ exclaimed Sam, grinning broadly, 
‘‘how am you feelin^ dis here mornin’?^’ 

Bill was beginning to feel lonely, but the broad 
face seemed very friendly indeed. 

‘^Pretty well, thanks,’^ he replied, smiling back 
at old Sam, who grinned broader than ever. 

^^Clar t^ goodness ah ^m powerful glad P hear 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 75 

it, an^ dat Jack boy ^11 be almighty glad too — no 
fun workin’ two jobs, sah, and dat’s what dat 
Jack er-doin^, yours and his. Now you wait, for 
dis here chicken ’s gwine git ye sum grub,^^ and 
Sam shuffled away at a great pace. 

Bill got up, and was surprised to find how weak 
he was, but by the time Sam returned, with a 
great bowl of thick broth, he looked fairly re- 
spectable. He was not very hungry, and would 
rather not have eaten, but Sam seemed so anx- 
ious to have him eat that he took a little broth 
just to please the good-natured cook. He ended 
by finishing the whole bowl, and gave a sigh be- 
cause there was no more, for he suddenly found 
that his appetite was ravenous. 

He carried the bowl back to the galley, where 
he found Sam hard at work, and whistling as 
usual. Bill put down the bowl and smacked his 
lips, at which Sam rolled his eyes, never ceasing 
his whistle, and then pointed from the fire to the 
sooty bucket once or twice. Bill had already 
learned one lesson, for he took the bucket with 
right good will, filled it, and brought it back, and 
no light job, either, for he was not even as strong 
as on the day before, and he came within one of 


76 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


tumbling down a hatch, bucket, coal and all. 
Then he skipped out on deck, took deep breaths of 
the fresh air and looked around for Jack, and for 
the first time got a good view of his vessel and of 
the sea, with the result that he held on to a cor- 
ner of the galley roof, and looked with all his 
eyes. 

What had seemed an ugly little vessel in the 
dock was something very different, out of sight of 
land, on the broad rollers of the Atlantic. Up to 
this time he really had not noticed what a beau- 
tiful ship it really was, for he had been so occupied 
with himself and his troubles, that he had hardly 
even looked around him before. But now it seemed 
very fine to him, the long curving lines of the 
sides, the tall straightness of the swaying masts, 
the lace-work of the many stays, the white ex- 
panses of the swelling sails, and indeed every 
detail seemed wonderful and attractive in itself. 

And then there was the sea. A stiff gale from the 
east had raised great, long, sweeping waves, whose 
tops danced, flashed, foamed and rippled in the 
clear sunlight. It was marvelous to see the bow 
of the ship mount higher and higher, with the bow- 
sprit pointing into the sky, and then, with a cloud 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 77 


of spray and foam coming onto the deck, to go 
plunging down into the quiet valleys of water. 

There were few men on deck, but these were 
men he had hardly noticed before, because up to 
this time mere sailors had been quite beneath him. 
He noticed them with curiosity, as they occa- 
sionally moved about, now hauling at one long rope, 
and now loosening another, apparently prompted 
by the mate, whom he saw standing by the main- 
mast, with hands in pockets, and gracefully sway- 
ing with the swing of the ship. 

Looking aft he saw a powerful man at the wheel, 
and standing close at hand, was the captain, who 
seemed to be watching him curiously. Seeing the 
captain’s eye on him. Bill immediately made his 
way aft, going rather clumsily, for he had not 
'Tound his sea legs” yet. 

^^So here y’ are at last,” said the captain, in a 
friendly manner. 

^^Yes,” replied Bill. ^^What shall I do now?” 

'^We gener’ly says ^ Sir ’ when we talks ter the 
capting or mate,” said Captain Seawell, shaking 
his head. 

“Yes — sir,” replied Bill, hanging his head. 

“I guess as ye Ve some of yer father in ye after 


78 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


all, hey?^^ remarked the captain, approvingly. 
^^We ’ll make a man of ye yet! So ye want ter 
know what ter do. All right. Git daown in the 
cabin and help Jackie, he ’s been a-doin’ two 
boys’ work this marnin’.” 

Willingly enough Billy scuttled down into the 
captain’s cabin, really a very commodious place 
for a schooner, and found Jack raising a big dust, 
house-cleaning for all he was worth. He stopped 
when he saw Bill. 

Hello, kiddo,” said he, ^^how d’ you feel?” 

''Prime,” replied Bill, "first class.” 

"Say, look here, I’m sure sorry I belted you 
yesterday, but you see I don’t take no sass from any 
kid my size, and I did n’t know you were sick.” 

"That ’s all right,” said Bill, much embarrassed, 
"let ’s get busy. What shall I do? I don’t know 
anything about this kind of business.” 

"Well, I ’ve just put the captain’s room to 
rights; now suppose you clear out the mate’s. 
Fix up his bunk and sweep the place out. I ’ve 
just about finished here.” 

Bill took a broom and went into the mate’s little 
stateroom. It did look messy. For a minute or 
two Bill looked around disgustedly, for it came 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 79 


over him at once that this was a fine job for the 
son of John H. Van Lennep. Sweeping out dirty 
cabins, and making beds! For a minute his old 
anger — the anger of a spoiled child — arose 
again, but he heard Jack cheerfully whistling in the 
main cabin, whistling while he worked, so he took 
heart of grace and said to himself, “Well, if that 
boy can stand it, I guess I can,^^ and so set to work. 
He really did not do so badly, considering that he 
had never done a real stroke of work in his life. 
He straightened out the bed, and swept and 
brushed like a good fellow, till the perspiration 
stood out on his forehead. When he had finished, 
the mate himself appeared at the door. 

The big, red-faced man looked seriously about 
the httle chamber, while Bill waited anxiously 
for judgment. Then Mr. Rodgers’ eyes twinkled. 
“Pretty good, m’ hearty, good enough! Now sup- 
pose you and Jack go down in the fo’cas’l an’ 
do likewise.” 

Bill was encouraged enough to attempt anything. 
He did not know what the forecastle was, but that 
made no difference, off he trotted with Jack to the 
other end of the ship, past a little group of seamen, 
who seemed to look at him curiously, and then 


80 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

clambered down into the stuffy, ’^-shaped place 
where the seamen had their bunks, and where in 
fact, several were obviously asleep that very 
minute, if loud snores meant anything. It was not 
very light down there, and everything seemed to 
be in a hopeless disorder, but Jack, not the least 
dismayed, set to work and soon had boots, oil- 
skins, and other articles in their places, in which 
work Bill aided as well as he could, and then they 
went on deck again. 

As it was getting late in the afternoon, now, 
old Sam beckoned for them both, and soon they 
were busily engaged in getting up supper, and a 
bountiful, though plain supper it was. The very 
smell of it made Bill ravenous. At last, when all 
was prepared. Jack began to carry steaming messes 
to the men’s quarters, while Bill was given similar, 
though perhaps a little daintier, viands for the 
captain’s table, for the captain and the mate had 
a table to themselves. 

It shows how an unpromising exterior may hide 
a character really quite different, for here was the 
vain, priggish, and idling young Bill doing his 
best to serve two of his father’s employees, and no 
easy matter either, as he had to navigate, with his 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 81 


waiter, a narrow passage that seemed to be lean- 
ing all kinds of ways at once, where it was hard 
enough to keep one^s balance, let alone carrying 
a waiter full of dishes at the same time. 

The captain and the mate took everything as a 
matter of course, giving Bill a little hint, now and 
then, to help him out. Bill being after all a 
rather bright boy, made a good job of it, and finally 
carried away the empty dishes and cleared the 
table without a single mishap, and was praised 
by the captain himself for his pains, a praise 
which actually made him glow with pleasure, 
though he chuckled a little too at the same time, 
when he thought how, two nights before, he had 
insulted and browbeaten the family butler who 
was waiting on him. Nor did he fail to contrast his 
treatment of the butler with the captain^s treat- 
ment of him. 

Then at last Jack and Bill sat down to second 
table in the warm galley, and BilFs appetite would 
not only have astonished his father, but would 
certainly have frightened his mother half to death. 
Then they went to their bunks and turned in. 

For a little while they lay quietly, then Bill 
asked — 


82 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


^‘How long have you been going to sea?^^ 

“Oh, I dunno,’^ rephed Jack, “I Ve been goin’ 
off an’ on. You see the captain ’s my uncle, an’ 
my folks are dead — they died a long time ago. 
So he takes care of me. He says I can do what I 
please when I ’m a man. In winter he makes me 
go to school in Gloucester, for he wants me to be 
educated. Summer before last I was on this here 
boat with him. Last summer I went up Maine 
way, in the woods, with a cousin — he ’s a kind 
of guide for summer people, you know, and I 
went along with him and a couple of summer 
folks, and we had canoes and a tent, and had a 
bang-up old time. I sure do like the woods, don’t 
you?” 

“Don’t know much about real woods, I guess,” 
confessed Bill. “I’ve been to Pocano and to 
Saranac Lake, but they ’re nothin’ but hotels, and 
dances, and such rot.” It might be said that a 
few days before Bill had had a very different 
opinion about these very hotels. “I ’d like to see 
a little real, real woods like you read about, I 
would, and go hunting and all that, and — oh, 
Christopher Columbus! Oh, glory be!” 

“Land sakes! what ’s struck you now?” cried 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 83 

Jack, almost in alarm, poking his head over his 
berth and looking down in amazement. 

'^Oh, pollywogs! I happened to just think of 
that gun in my box there! I guess the old man has 
something up his sleeve. And I went and forgot 
all about it !' I say. Jack, I bet I ’m going hunting. 

Lucky dog!’’ cried Jack, dolefully. 

You bet! Now, I wonder where, and I wonder 
who with? I tell you I wish it were morning for 
I ’d go and ask the captain.” 

^ ^You’re powerful anxious to get off the Bel- 
grade, are n’t you? ” 

^‘What’s the ^ Belgrade queried Bill, sur- 
prised. 

^^Why, it ’s this here boat, of course; don’t you 
even know the name of the boat you ’re sailing 
on?” 

didn’t know it — never heard of it. Sure 
I ’ll be glad to leave it, that is — er — I think — ” 
and Bill hesitated, at first for fear of hurting Jack’s 
feelings, and secondly the sheer novelty of his 
experience was beginning to tell, though he disliked 
to admit even to himself that he was having a 
pretty good time after all. 

don’t know as I ’d be so awful glad to leave 


84 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


her after all/^ Bill said, finally; is all dead 
new, you know, but I kinder like it/’ 

She’s a blame fine old boat, and don’t you 
forgit it!” declared Jack, loyally. 

guess she is,” agreed Bill, “but I do like that 
idea of hunting, and maybe we will run across 
bears, and such like. Oh, gee!” and Bill was lost 
in rosy contemplation for a few minutes. 

“But I ’d hate to leave you. Jack, for I guess 
you ’re the only fellow I ever really liked. I won- 
der if your uncle would let you go with me. That 
would be slick.” 

“Dunno,” said Jack, sleepily, “maybe.” 

“You ’ve been in the woods before, you know, 
and you could help me out, I ’m such a greeny. 
And maybe your cousin is the very man who is go- 
ing to take me! I say. Jack, we ’ve got to work it 
somehow.” 

“Who? Huh?” this from Jack, who was dead 
tired, and nearly asleep. 

“I say it would be great if your cousin would 
take us both for a trip, we’d get along fine, 
would n’t we? ” 

“Snor-r-r, snor-r-r.” 

“Blest if that kid has n’t gone plumb to sleep,” 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 85 


gasped Bill, stifling a gape himself. But in exactly 
five minutes Bill outdid Jack himself, and slept 
like a top till morning. 

Bill awoke in the morning, fighting for life, or 
at least so he thought. There was a great scram- 
bling and struggling and bumping, and when he 
managed to pry his eyes open he found that Jack 
had hauled him out of his bunk onto the floor, by 
way of waking him up. As Jack stood there laugh- 
ing at him. Bill felt bound to jump up and grab 
him by the neck, which he did. They had an excit- 
ing tussle for a few seconds, which ended, as might 
have been expected, by BilPs being put square 
upon his back upon the floor. 

'^Come, now, git a move on you,’^ cried Jack, 
'^if you want a real, first-class, double-jointed 
shower-bath.^’ He gave Bill a slap on his back, 
grabbed a great rough towel, and raced out of the 
little cabin with Bill after him. Along the narrow 
passage to the galley they raced, then scrambled 
up to the deck, with the gurgles of old Sam in their 
ears, and finally ended at the very bow of the ship, 
when Bill noticed that Jack had picked up a 
bucket on the way, a bucket with a long rope 
attached. 


86 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


^^Now strip, you landlubber!’’ cried Jack, as 
he tore off the few garments he had on, throwing 
them over the capstan, then running to the side 
with his bucket, which he soon had filled with 
cold, clear sea-water. 

This was a brand new experience for Bill, but 
Jack’s example was a strong one, and he soon had 
his things off and on the capstan, when he re- 
ceived a great douse of cold water which soaked 
him from head to foot and made him jump and 
yell I can tell you. He had hardly finished stamp- 
ing about from the effects of the first, when he re- 
ceived a second, and this one, strange to say, felt 
decidedly pleasant, and the third was more pleas- 
ant even than the second. Then it was Bill’s 
turn to soak Jack, which he finally did after nearly 
losing the bucket overboard. Then the two boys 
danced about and rubbed themselves red with the 
rough towels, put on their trousers, and rushed 
below to finish the toilet. 

<<My goodness, but that was fine!” cried Bill, 
^Hhat was the finest bath I ever had in my life, 
I do believe. I bet I could eat a horse, and then 
cry for another!” 

Nothing like it,” agreed Jack, ^^and what’s 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 87 

more, you could n’t do that on every boat, but 
you see we ’re neithef of us regular boat boys, 
kinder half passengers, sailing for the good of our 
constitootions!” 

Bill laughed, as he hurried into his warm 
flannel shirt. 

^^So you see uncle lets me have a good time, 
just so ’s I do my work, and that ain’t very bad, 
you know.” 

Both being ready, they rushed to the galley, 
and again Bill carried the breakfast to the cap- 
tain’s cabin, while Jack served the men. Then 
after getting rid of an immense breakfast them- 
selves, they went on deck and watched the 
helmsman a little while. 

The sea was much as it was the day before, 
though the wind had shifted to northeast, which 
made it slow progress for a schooner beating up 
the coast. In the morning’s sun, far off to the 
east. Bill saw a long white streak, land, sure 
enough, and a good distance away. 

'^That’s Cape Cod,” said the helmsman, see- 
ing Bill’s glance, ^^and I wish we was a-goin’ inter 
Bosting Bay. We ’re going to have some consid- 
erable blow, I ’m thinkin’.” 


88 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


Why the man should think so, Bill could not 
imagine, for the sky seemed fairly clear and the 
sun was shining brightly, but nevertheless the 
fact is that in an hour a settled haze appeared 
in the northeast, and the wind came stronger 
and stronger. The mate and the captain both 
took a hand, and Bill heard something about the 
barometer still falling. He did not know what 
barometer,’’ meant, but he thought that some- 
thing serious was in prospect. At last the helms- 
man was ordered to throw the ship into the wind, 
and this being done, the great booms of the sails 
were swung in over the deck. Then there was a 
great running about, climbing, and ordering, 
with the whole crew, including old Sam, reefing 
the great sails, and they took in all the reefs, too, 
for the captain shook his head dubiously every 
time he looked at the eastern sky. 

The sails all being reefed, the vessel was turned 
again so that the wind caught the sails, and they 
went on as before, only not as rapidly of course, 
yet well enough, for the wind was coming strongly 
and blowing the splashing wave-tops off through 
the air. Bill involuntarily caught hold of Jack, 
as the lee rail seemed to bend down almost to 
the water. 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 89 

''What the matter, is there a hurricane com- 
ing?’’ he asked in alarm. 

''Gee, no!” replied Jack with an untroubled 
laugh. " Nothin’ but a good stiff gale; pretty good 
fun, I think. Nothin’ could sink this here fat old 
hooker. She just enjoys these waves. See her 
jump inter them!” he exclaimed, as the Belgrade 
plunged her nose into a tall, sweeping billow, and 
then, with a cloud of foam coming over her bow, 
leaped upward with a swing that nearly made 
one dizzy. 

"It ’s uncle,” continued Jack behind his hand, 
for they were near the wheel where Captain 
Seawell was standing as though on guard. "You 
see he ’s got a great old record for regularity, an’ 
all that. He aims to git to Cape Breton at such 
an’ such a time, so when the wind comes dead 
against him like it ’s a-doin’ now, so ’s he has to 
tack all the way up the coast, and when that 
wind gets stiffish, so ’s he has to reef and reef 
pretty close — why, he ’s just clean agitated, 
looks solemn as an owl, keeps a weather eye on 
his blame old barometer, and has as much fun 
in him as a graveyard. Don’t you care, sonny, 
we ’re not goin’ to the bottom yet.” 


90 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


In fact, as Bill looked over the deck, there 
seemed to be no alarm anywhere, for half the 
men had returned to the forecastle, and the cook 
to his galley, and puffs of smoke from the galley 
stove pipe seemed to show that Sam was busily 
encouraging the fire for the process of cooking 
the midday meal. 

Suddenly Jack struck Bill in the middle of his 
back. ^^My stars, kiddo!’’ cried he, ^^you might 
think we was sure enough passengers, the way 
we ’re loafing about here. Let ’s get busy before 
the cap’n gets after us with a rope’s end!” 

So down they skipped into the captain’s cabin, 
Bill almost breaking his neck down the steep 
companion way as the ship seemed to endeavor 
suddenly to stand on one end, and there they 
put everything in good order. It took all of 
Jack’s confidence and good humor to keep Bill’s 
heart in its place, for the whole ship seemed to be 
groaning and creaking, and sometimes there 
came a quivering and thundering as a mass of 
green water tumbled in upon the forward deck, 
to go sweeping aft as the Belgrade rose to a giant 
wave. Jack seemed to move about easily enough, 
but Bill managed only by keeping his legs far 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 91 


apart, and even then he was more than once 
nearly thrown across the cabin when the vessel 
seemed bound to do some utterly terrible acro- 
batic act. So occasionally Bill was terrified 
through and through, and felt cold chills run up 
and down his back; but the last few days were 
having their effect and he pulled himself to- 
gether grimly, with a moral courage of which 
no one would have thought him possessed, and 
manfully tried to look as unconcerned as Jack, 
who laughed, chatted, and whistled as carelessly 
as though he were still on the old dock where 
they had left Mr. Parker sitting so calmly on a 
stanchion. 

After all was made as orderly as possible they 
scrambled forward through the narrow passage 
to the galley, and Bill took more courage again 
when he found Sam whistling away and working 
as hard as ever, totally oblivious, it seemed, to 
the fact that the boat was more than half the 
time nearly on her beam ends, not always pleas- 
ant for a cook, either, who must keep his pots 
from shding away to the destruction of their 
contents. 

Half by speaking, and half by signs, Sam set 


92 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

them to work, for, truth to tell, the captain took 
his nephew along just to do odds and ends about 
the ship, such as helping the cook, looking after 
the cabins, polishing brass-work, and such simple 
duties, and the owner^s son was brought along to 
share them. 

^‘There’s nothing to be gained by making a 
laborer of the boy,’^ Mr. Van Lennep had told 
the captain, ^^but I want him to be given some 
light work regularly, and made to do it, too, and 
well, so that he may at once get an idea both of 
work and regularity, as well as wholesome disci- 
pline.^’ For this reason the captain let him share 
his duties with Jack, and the plan was an ad- 
mirable one. 

Bill was not making a great success of himself 
in the galley this day, for he spilled things in 
all directions, shamefacedly, too, for he really 
wanted to do well, at least as well as Jack, but 
the rolling and pitching were too much for him. 
So Sam, grinning and whistling at the same 
time — no easy feat either — set him to the daily 
work of peeling potatoes, that he could seat him- 
self in some safe comer. Bill kept steadily to his 
work, and for more than one reason, for this wild 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 93 

jumping about of the Belgrade began to have an 
unpleasant effect, and more than once he was 
forced to go out on the wet deck for a few min- 
utes, to allow the cool, fresh winds to clear his head 
for him. And every time he went out he was al- 
most too fascinated to return, for never had he 
seen anything so awesome and so wonderfully 
grand as the great billows that were sweeping 
like veritable rows of gray hills from the North- 
east. Although they almost fascinated him, yet 
in a minute or two Bill would return to work in 
the galley with redoubled ardor, to keep from 
thinking of the queer feelings he had, and for- 
tunately it was not a really great while before 
those feelings disappeared, though he wondered 
more than once how a human being could be 
bounced around so outrageously, and yet be none 
the worse for it. 

But the real excitement came when it was time 
for Bill to carry the captain^s dinner through the 
long swinging passage that led under the deck 
from the galley to the cabin. He started off all 
right, with the heavy china dishes on an iron 
tray. Slowly and carefully he went, with feet 
wide apart, steadying himself now and then, by 


94 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


touching a wall with an elbow. But things began 
to happen just as he reached the cabin door. A 
wild roll of the boat swung him into one wall, 
then a sudden recoil actually threw him against 
the opposite wall of the corridor. He tried to 
raise the tray when he saw what was coming, 
with the result that as he hit the wall the tray 
was knocked upside down, right over his head, 
so that he was deluged with stew, coffee, sugar, 
butter, and boiled pudding. For a second he 
stood bent forward, with arms hanging stiffly 
down, then a lurch of the Belgrade tilted him 
against the cabin door, which opened and let him 
into the presence of the captain. The Belgrade 
almost threw him into the room, and then checked 
so suddenly that he sat instantly upon the floor, 
and remained there dazed, propping himself with 
his arms. 

‘^Why, howdy do!’’ said the captain, grimly. 
^^Come right in an’ make yerself t’ hum. How 
did yer leave yer folks? Passable, I reckon, 
passable.” And the old man leaned over the 
table and looked with twinkling eyes at the out- 
raged Bill, who looked as though he had been 
living with pigs, and pigs that were not over- 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 95 


nice as to their manners, at that. But the cap- 
tain was impatient to get back to the deck, for 
this was no time to be idling in a cabin, and Bill 
still sat there, as though afraid to move. 

'^If ye Ve rested enough,’^ said Captain Sea- 
well, finally, perhaps ye would n^t mind gettin^ 
me sum vittles, that is, onless ye want ter set 
here and write poetry.’^ 

Then Bill scrambled to his feet and his face was 
red enough, I assure you. As he left the cabin 
the captain called after him, ‘^Don^t try to dance 
no more out there or ye might bust sumpthin^, 
an^ ye ^d better tell Sam the capting ^s eat it all, 
an^ wants sum more!’^ 

Bill closed the door, then picked up his tray, 
placed the indestructible dishes on it and sham- 
bled back to the galley, where Sam received him 
with upraised arms and hanging mouth. 

‘^Wall I ^clare t’ goodness!^^ exclaimed Sam, 
‘4ook at dis here pusson! Lan^ sakes, have ye 
gone an’ went an’ upsot the capting’s dinner? 
Look-a-here, chile, dat dinner ’s worth two bits! 
Ain’t that ’xasperashun? ” 

Meantime Jack, who had looked up when Bill 
returned, was holding his sides and bending al- 


96 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


most double with silent mirth. But Sam saw 
nothing funny at all; he was very angry, for here 
was a good dinner wasted for nothing. He picked 
up a big metal spoon and shook it at Bill. ^^Now 
jist you amble outen here!^^ he shouted, “jist 
amble outen here an’ scrape yoself. Dis ain’t no 
pigpen! An’ doant set there a-laffin’l” he roared 
at Jack, giving him a smart rap with the spoon on 
his head, ^^an’ when yuah scraped dat mess offen 
you, come right back hyar for sum mo’ grub fo’ 
de capting, an’ if yo’ spill dat — den de Lawd 
hab mussy on yo’ soul!” He made a dash at 
Bill, who made a dash on his own account, and 
went into his httle cabin where he removed the 
worst of the mess as quickly as possible, and re- 
turned with clean shirt to the galley, just as Sam 
placed another dinner on the tray. I might add 
that Sam was whistling as usual, and looked as 
though nothing had ever happened to ruffle his 
good-nature. 

“Here’s de capting’s dinner, honey,” he said, 
“tote it right erlong.” 

This time Bill had decided that one such ca- 
lamity was enough, so, unaware that Jack was 
watching him through one crack, and Sam through 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 97 

another, he carefully placed the tray on the cor- 
ridor floor, and, on his hands and knees, actually 
pushed that tray all the way to the cabin door, 
then, seizing an interval when the deck did not 
seem quite perpendicular, he lifted the tray, en- 
tered the cabin, and placed the platters on the 
table before the waiting captain, and then breathed 
a sigh of relief! 

After that, everything went well with him, for 
he removed the dishes when the captain had 
finished, and served the mate after him, all with- 
out mishap, though the Belgrade's movements 
were more violent than ever, if anything. 

After Bill and Jack had finished their own 
meal, and had helped old Sam fix up, they donned 
oil-skins — Bill for the first time — and climbed 
to the deck, aft, by the wheel. They both gasped 
as they first met the shock of the wind and water, 
for the former was reaching almost a hurricane 
velocity, and seemed to take off whole tops of 
waves and shower them through the air. The 
noise was almost deafening. First of all, the wind 
roared through the rigging, bending the tall masts 
far over, so that the ends of the booms frequently 
caught the water in a swirl of spray; and then 


98 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


there was almost a continuous thunder of water at 
the bows, over which the water always seemed to 
be poming, except when the good ship would 
rise over the crest of a mighty wave, when not 
only the bow, but it seemed almost half of the 
keel, must be out of the water. Then the bow 
would descend with a plunge, and the green 
water would pour over the forward deck, until it 
was hard to tell, sometimes, whether the ship were 
really above or below the surface of the ocean. 

Two stout seamen, with the gigantic mate at 
hand, were at the wheel, and it frequently seemed 
that it was about to throw off the united weight 
of all three. Near at hand, too, stood the doughty 
captain, with feet wide apart, covered with rub- 
ber from head to foot, and keeping a sharp watch 
on things with his keen old eyes. Few other men 
were about, there being only a couple here and 
there, under the lee of the galley or the cabin, 
ready for prompt action in case of emergency. 

That Bill was quite terrified was no wonder, 
and indeed he looked at the mountainous waves 
and low-hanging, scurrying, leaden clouds with 
rather a white face, and even Jack seemed to lose 
some of his accustomed assurance. 


THE OCEAN SHOWS WHAT IT CAN DO 99 


Speech was almost out of the question, though 
the looks the two boys gave each other were al- 
most more eloquent than words. But now and 
then the captain would step to the mate and roar 
something into his ear, and the mate would roar 
back, upon which perhaps some slight alteration 
would be made in the course. How long this 
continued. Bill did not know, but finally he dis- 
tinctly heard the captain shout, “She’s blown 
aout, I reckon,” to which the mate nodded with a 
decisive nod of his head, upon which strained ex- 
pressions became more natural, and the boys felt 
a great load taken from their hearts. And it 
really did seem as though the captain had judged 
right, for certain it was that the wind was lessen- 
ing its power, that the waves were not quite as 
terrible, and that not quite so much water came 
pouring over upon the deck. 

It was late in the afternoon that they saw a 
wonderful sight. The sea was still tremendous, 
but there came a rift in the clouds, far away be- 
fore them, and in the hazy sunlight they saw a 
great, beautiful ship coming majestically toward 
them, with the force of the wind behind her sails, 
for it was a sailing vessel, though her hull was that 


100 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


of an ocean liner. Before the patch of sunlight 
faded away, Bill had counted the stranger^s masts, 
and found there were seven. She became almost 
invisible, as she went from the sunlight, but 
soon she passed them, and very near, and truly 
it was a wonderful sight to see her, a schooner, 
but so gigantic that she seemed to make nothing 
of the storm and its terrors, but swept mightily 
on her way, with the foam flying from under her 
great bow. She appeared to bring good fortune 
with her, for after her passing the wind seemed 
to abate still more, and finally the captain stamped 
down into his cabin, and the two boys went to 
the galley with qheerful faces to aid in preparing 
the evening meal, little thinking what a night 
was before them. 


CHAPTER VI 

AN EXCITING ADVENTUBE 

The boys were cleaning up by the light of the 
galley lamp, for it had become quite dark outside, 
by the time the men had finished their evening 
meal. Everyone was in better spirits, for al- 
though the Belgrade was still pitching and rolling 
heavily, it seemed certain that the worst of the 
storm was over. And now and then old Sam 
would burst into song, rolling his eyes and sway- 
ing his body. If it was a song the boys knew, 
they joined in the chorus, but if they did not 
know it, which was generally the case, they merely 
beat time on the table with their hands or with a 
dipper, or with anything that came handy. One 
song Sam must have made up himself. The boys 
could never remember anything but the chorus, 
when talking about it afterwards, but the chorus 
went something as follows: 


102 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


“ Hit may seem laike it funny, 

But Ah muss certumly be amblin’ erlong; 

Dere ’s sumpin pretty heavy in dis bag ob mi ne 
Dat does n’t jist rightfully belong. 

Shuah Ah can’t stay here a-foolin’, 

Dat ’ere constable ’s powerful strong, 

So don’t talk t’ me about chicken an’ duck, 

Fo’ dis here nigger don’t hab no luck — 

Wat Ah got, marser Judge? Jus’ a little gardin’ truck! 

So good-by, m’ honey! 

Ah muss certumly be a-amblin’ erlong.” 

Old Sam had just finished this chorus when the 
door opened, and the mate stuck his head in. 
'^Hey, you boys!^’ cried he, “git a move on. 
Tumble out now, we Ve got more use fer ye than 
ter have ye settin’ in there squawkin’ like geese!” 

The boys leaped to their feet, and were into 
their oils and on deck in a jiffy. What was their 
surprise to find everything obscured by a dense, 
rolling fog that hid effectively everything more 
than twenty feet away. 

“Gee, what a fog!” exclaimed Jack, sniffing at 
the old, moist air. “I know what this means; it 
means that you and me will ring the bell and blow 
the blame whistle till the cows come home.” 

And that was just the work the mate set out 
for them. A cord was put into Bill’s hand, with 


AN EXCITING ADVENTURE 


103 


instructions to give the bell a good ringing every 
few seconds, while Jack was ordered to manipu- 
late the foot-power whistle, and a mournful 
wheezy howl that arose in a few moments told 
that he was at work. 

The whole performance struck Bill as being 
decidedly uncanny. The wind had certainly died 
down, but the waves were still running very 
high, so that the ship was plunging heavily, and 
yet one could have told nothing about the waves 
were it not for the movement of the BelgradCy 
for little was to be seen beyond the rail but the 
occasional shimmer of white foam. 

True it is there were two faint glimmers of 
light where the port and starboard lanterns were 
hung, but beyond this all was black, and a black- 
ness of almost a suffocating kind. Bill pulled 
regularly on the cord, and the bell sent its clear 
tones out into the night, but Bill felt that the 
rustling of the waters and the density of the fog 
must prevent its being heard at a great distance. 
He put more trust in the whistle that raised its 
doleful voice at regular intervals. 

Never had Bill been so lonely, and thoughts 
crowded in upon him thick and fast, thoughts of 


104 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


home, of his past life, of his past character, of 
which he was beginning to have a different opin- 
ion, of his new experiences, and what they possi- 
bly meant to him, and of his future, with certain 
half -formed pledges and promises. 

sure was a dub,’’ he decided, real poor 
fool. And I ’m not a match for Jack now, either, 
in any way, but I will be, you bet ! ” 

Just then he heard a heavily rumbling, roaring 
sound from near at hand on the water, then his 
heart stood still, for with the shouting of men in 
his ears, he saw the straight line of a wet bow 
descending on the ship. Down and forward 
came the steel line, and crashed through the side 
of the Belgrade just where the galley stood. The 
shock threw Bill violently off his feet. Then 
there followed a great confusion. Scrambling 
up, he saw that the sharp bow had cut half way 
through the stricken ship, and that the two were 
locked fast, rising and falling together. He also 
saw that in plunging down the top of the strange 
bow was elevated but a little above their own 
deck. He had only a minute to observe this, 
which he did in a twinkling, when a rush of men 
from the forecastle of the Belgrade at first threw 


AN EXCITING ADVENTURE 


105 


him down again, then picked him up and hurried 
him along to the bow of the steamer, where willing 
hands lifted them to the comparative safety of 
the steamer^s deck. Half dazed by the light of 
half a dozen ship^s lanterns. Bill saw the crew of 
the Belgrade lifted up, one by one. After the men 
came the mate, but the old captain seemed loath 
to go. 

'^Hev ye got them all?” he cried, standing on 
what remained of the galley roof. 

‘^Yes, we Ve got them!” cried one of the men. 

‘^Hev ye got the boy. Van Lennep^s boy?” 

'^Ay, ay, sir, we Ve got him, and your boy, so 
come up, sir, come up, sir!” 

The old captain, who seemed to have aged in a 
second, feebly raised an arm, after handing up 
his beloved log-book, and was lifted up with the 
others. 

Anxiously the old man went over the names 
of his men, and seemed to find all on hand, a 
miraculous escape indeed; then suddenly he 
roared out, Hey, whereas Sam? Whereas the 
cook?” 

They all remembered that it was the galley 
which the bow had nearly gone completely 


106 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


through; nevertheless, the big mate leaned over 
the deck of his old ship and shouted with all his 
lungs, ^^Sam! Sam! Oh, Sam!^’ 

Then in the hazy light of several overhanging 
lamps an object was seen crawling over the ruins 
of the galley toward them. 

‘^Ise a-comin’, Marser Rodgers, Ise a-comin^* 
this chicken ’s hurted, but Ise a-comin\’^ 

The poor man had almost reached the out- 
stretched arms, in fact one or two bold hearts 
were making ready to leap down to his aid, when 
a mighty wave loosened the hold of the schooner 
upon the terrible bow, which suddenly arose and 
retreated from the wreck it had made, then 
swung forward and struck another blow. All 
was confusion in an instant. Men ran hither and 
thither. A tremor told of the engine being set 
at work, and the ships drew apart. Then a search- 
light was put into play, and with its aid was seen, 
dimly, the poor Belgrade, with her deck just 
awash. And as they looked at her the end came. 
With a roar she seemed to straighten and go 
down, leaving only a mass of floating wreckage 
and churning waters behind her. 

‘^The cook, the poor cook,^^ cried one of the 


AN EXCITING ADVENTURE 


107 


men, and then from the wreckage came a voice 
for a moment — 

^^Ise a-comin^, Marser Capting, jes hole on, Ise 
a-comin\^” 

Then a vast whitecap broke about them, 
drenching the group at the bow and sweeping in 
tumult over the place where the fated Belgrade 
went down. When it had passed all looked 
anxiously into the water, and the search-light 
flickered its clouded needle hither and yon, but 
no sign of the brave colored man was to be seen; 
even the wreckage had been driven from sight. 
Bill crouched by the rail, and sobbed hysterically, 
and Jack felt no better. Then, after a little 
while, realizing that further stay was useless, 
the throbbing of the engine began again, and the 
steamer moved on with a great opening in her 
bow, be it said, through which each successive 
wave poured a deluge of water, until wedged 
mattresses stopped the worst of it. 

How long Bill sat there he neither knew nor 
cared, but finally he was picked up, carried into 
a warm cabin, and placed on a berth where he 
dozed fitfully all night, ever and anon hearing 
in his ears the plaintive voice of old Sam coming 


108 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


from a churning mass of broken timbers, faintly — 
^^Ise a-comin’, Marser Capting, Ise a-cominM^^ 

In the electrically lighted captain^s cabin, a 
group sat around the great table. The steamer’s 
captain, a burly man with a great gray beard and 
mustache, wagged his head solemnly. 

‘^Captain Seawell, man,” said he, ‘^ye must 
give the Lard thanks for a stout ship, for its main 
wonderfu’ how she bided wi’ us. Fast she stuck 
till we could haul ye up, an’ then gin up her 
spirrit like the guid ship she were, ah’ went un- 
der, holdin’ her masts up straight like a Chris- 
tian. It ’s a peetyfu’ thing she could n’t ’a’ bided a 
wee mair for yon poor black man, but she did the 
best she knew, or ye ’d never seen home again.” 

Captain Seawell raised his face from his hands. 
^^Home!” he cried, brokenly, “that ship were my 
home. Forty year I sailed her, mate an’ capting, 
an’ I did n’t caount on any better home nor her. 
An’ now she ’s on the bottom. Why did n’t ye 
blow yer whistle? We might ha’ veered a little in 
time.” 

“We blawed the whustle, man, we blawed the 
whustle. Do ye think we ’re a tuppenny tramp 
a-tryin’ to save steam on a whustle? But the 


AN EXCITING ADVENTURE 


109 


noise of the sea took it from ye, and we did n^t 
hear that whustle of yours till we were a-top o’ 
your ship. An’ if we were not goin’ slow, an’ if we 
had n’t reversed the engine, we ’d a-cut ye clean 
in twa, but the guid Lard decreed otherwise.” 

Captain Seawell’s head again sunk into his 
hands. ‘^She was a good ship,” said he, brokenly, 
‘^an’ now she ’s gone, I ’d better be a-goin’ too, 
fer we was both of us old, old enough to rest, I 
reckon.” 

“A-weel, a-weel, man, tak’ it wi’ a bold heart, 
for such things come to those wha gae down tae 
the sea in ships, an’ we maun bear our sorrow wi’ 
our fortune. Sae gaes the warld. Wha ’s the 
laddie wi’ ye. Captain? The men say it ’s John 
Van Lennep’s son, but yon ’s not posseeble.” 

The captain lifted his head again. Van Len- 
nep’s son was a responsibility. They’ve told 
it true,” he said, '^it ’s John Van Lennep’s son 
he is, an’ a good-for-nothing boy he was when he 
came ter me. The owner sent for me jist before 
sailin’ time and he sez, sez he, ‘Seawell,’ sez he, 
^ that there boy of mine looks like he ’s no good. 
He ’s a kind o’ coward, and a kind o’ sneak, and 
smokes cigarettes. Take him up the coast with 


110 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


ye, and see if you can’t knock somethin’ out o’ 
him, and mebbe somethin’ inter him, and then 
hand him over to Scotty at Falmouth.’ Scotty ’s 
my newy by marriage and a kind o’ woodsman, 
I reckon. ^Hand him over ter Scotty,’ says the 
boss, ^an’ mebbe betwix the two of ye, ye ’ll 
make somethin’ o’ the boy.’ So I takes him on, 
and gives it ter him purty hard the first day or 
two, an’ I tell ye that there kid ’s got good stuff 
in him. He ’s jist been too much coddled like, 
and spiled like, ye understand. An’ now how ’m I 
a-goin’ ter hand him over to Scotty at Falmouth? 
I don’t reckon I ’ve even axed who ye are an’ 
where ye ’re bound yet.” 

‘^That’s soon answert,” replied the bluff 
Scotch captain of the steamer. This ship ’s 
ca’ed the New Castle^ eight days out of. Liverpool, 
an’ bound for Boston we were when we met wi’ 
ye. But we ’re headin’ for Portland the now, 
bein’ close at hand, to tak a look at our bow 
which ye ’ve considerable stove in, so to say. 
Meanwhiles we ’ll telegraph to Van Lennep an’ 
to your sister’s brother, an’ sae gie our wireless 
man something to do but eat an’ sleep, which he 
does maist disgracefu’. ” 


AN EXCITING ADVENTURE 


111 


And so, soon afterwards, Mr. Van Lennep, in 
New York, received a message via wireless telling 
of the loss of the Belgrade^ and of the safety and 
good health of his son. Scotty will get the boy, 
according to orders,’^ concluded the message, and 
Mr. John H. Van Lennep wiped the perspiration 
from his brow, said ‘‘Whew!^^ and scratched the 
back of his head. He had come near giving Bill’s 
career a finishing other than he intended. Well,” 
he finally concluded, maybe it ’s not so bad for 
him after all. A little more seriousness may be 
gained after an experience like that. I wonder 
how the young prig is making out!” 

The young prig awoke early that morning 
after a troubled sleep, and for a few minutes lay 
still, wondering where he was, and then the whole 
experience of the day before came back to him, 
and I tell you that he did more serious thinking, 
and more to the point, during the next quarter of 
an hour than he had ever done before. It seemed 
an age since he had left his home. The sissy 
boy, Willie, of whom all the boys made fun, 
seemed to be an entirely different person. He 
actually snorted when he thought of the way 
Bully Fairfax had banged him about. His eyes 


112 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


stung a little as he thought of his mother, and 
remembered the many unpleasant hours he must 
have given her, in return for the love she lavished 
on him. Then, too, he thought of his father with 
an entirely new respect. “Wise old bird, Dad,^' 
he said to himself. “Knew what he was doing, I 
guess, when he put me on board the old Belgrade, 
Well, I was a poor mutt, sure enough! Wait till 
I get home; I ^11 show them.^^ 

For a while he lay on his back, thinking, and 
gazing at the bottom of the berth above him. 
Then a familiar-looking bare foot and leg came 
over the side of that berth, followed by another, 
and then none other than Jack leaped to the 
floor, and, seeing Bill awake, sat on the edge of 
the latter’s berth and asked him how he felt. 

“Fine as silk!” answered Bill. “I was just 
thinking about the poor old Belgrade, Is n’t that 
the hardest luck! But talk about your narrow 
escapes! I ’ve been dreaming about it all night, 
and about poor Sambo, too. Say, I can hear 
him yet, calling from the water, you know, ‘Ise 
a-comin’, Marser Capting!’ I liked Sam, didn’t 
you. Jack? He must have had grit, too, for he 
couldn’t walk, you know; guess his legs were 


AN EXCITING ADVENTURE 


113 


broken. He was in the galley when the crash 
came. But he did n’t yell or make any fuss, but 
just did the best he could. I ’ll never forget old 
Sam, Jackie, and I think I ’ll be a better man be- 
cause I knew him.” From this you can judge 
whether Bill was the same boy or not. 

All the while Bill was talking. Jack sat still on 
the edge of the berth, and once wiped his eyes 
with the back of his hand, and gave a decided 
sniffle. But Jack was not a boy to remain gloomy 
or mournful for a very long time, so in a minute 
or two he had washed and was getting into his 
clothes. “Come on. Bill,” said he, “get a move 
on, and see what kind of a boat we ’re on. Seems 
funny after being on a sailing boat, does n’t it?” 

“It sure does,” rephed Bill, “it’s so much 
steadier, you know, and seems not so much ahve, 
but more like a machine that goes right ahead 
and does n’t ask questions or leave of anybody. 
I ’ve never been on a big steamer before. Won- 
der where we ’re going?” 

“Heard a man say Boston,” replied Jack. 

“Punk!” cried Bill, “and oh. Jack, my gun 
and all my hunting things 1 They ’re at the bot- 
tom! Ain’t that a mess? Talk about luck!” 


114 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


“Luck!^^ cried Jack, ’s blame lucky for you 
that you are not on the bottom along with your 
gun and things/’ 

Guess you’re right, but I never had a gun 
before. Could have had one though, I dare say, 
only I never wanted one. Maybe Dad will send 
me another.” 

All this time the boys were getting on their 
clothes and soon — for it did not take long to put 
on shirts, overalls, and boots — they went out of 
their neat little cabin and up on the deck, a deck 
so different from the one to which they had been 
accustomed, that they felt quite lost and wan- 
dered about curiously, especially Bill, who found 
everything interesting. Up on the bridge was 
a stout, good-natured looking man, who called 
cheerily to them. 

^^Coom up here, laddies, and let’s get ac- 
quaintit.” So they both climbed the iron ladder 
leading to the bridge, and Bill noticed the word 
Captain ” on the blue cap the man wore. 

Captain MacDonald smiled a bit grimly when 
he observed the two boys closely, for he could 
hardly for the life of him tell which was the son 
of the rich Van Lennep and which was the nephew 


AN EXCITING ADVENTURE 


115 


of a poor, shipless sea-captain, only he noticed 
that one was stronger and browner than the 
other, so he said to Bill: 

An’ what think ye o’ the sea, laddie? There ’s 
much guid in a sea life, and much that ’s onfor- 
tunate. I ken your father, an’ a fine man he is, 
an upright man wi’ a clean record. His son should 
be a fine lad, too. You ’re getting bonny brown, 
but ye must ha’ some muscles on your back if 
you ’re going to stand straight an’ look the warld 
in the face. I ’m a-thinkin’ ye ’ll get that in the 
woods along wi’ Scotty.” Then he shook hands 
with Bill, and afterwards with Jack, saying a few 
kind words to the latter. But Bill’s heart was 
thumping because the captain had mentioned 
woods” and “Scotty.” So he said: 

“Excuse me, sir, but did you say I ’m going to 
the woods, with Scotty? ” 

“Vara true, lad, vara true. We ’ll be in Port- 
land in four hours, and Scotty will come there to 
meet ye. So said your father. My wireless man 
got his word not half an hour since. Now I ’m 
thinkin’ ye could eat somewhat, sae off wi’ ye to 
breakfast.” A sailor showed them a dining-room, 
where quite a few men were busily eating. These 


116 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


were assistant engineers, petty officers, and the 
like. They were given places and fell to hungrily 
upon the bountiful meal provided, listening to 
the discussions of the last night^s adventure that 
were going on about them. Indeed, uncon- 
sciously they formed part of the subject of con- 
versation themselves, and many a smile went 
around at the appearance of Bill, who, in his 
soiled, rough garb, looked as little like the son of 
a millionaire as did the round-faced Jack beside 
him. 

And all the while the good steamer New Castle 
was making fair time over an easy sea, rapidly 
bringing Bill nearer and nearer to Portland, 
where the second chapter of his experience begins. 


PART SECOND 

IN THE WOODS AND MOUNTAINS 









CHAPTER VII 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 

When land came in sight, the only one who 
seemed to‘ be entirely uninterested was Captain 
Seawell, who sat alone in the comfortable captain^s 
cabin, thinking of nothing but the loss of the poor 
Belgrade^ which he had loved as though it had 
been human. But the two boys took a position 
at the bow, and excitedly talked over their pros- 
pects, and tried to make plans for the future. 

One thing was certain. Bill was very anxious to 
try living in the forest for a while, and another 
thing was just as certain, and that was that the 
last few days had given him his first boy friend, 
and had strongly cemented the friendship, too, 
so that he was loath to go into the woods and 
leave Jack behind. As far as Jack was concerned, 
he had had quite enough of the ocean for that sum- 
mer and thought to himself that, as his cousin 
was to be Bilks guide, there was no reason why he 


120 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


should not join the party, that is, if his uncle were 
willing, and if Scotty were willing. But he had 
compunctions about leaving his uncle, for the old 
man seemed broken and might need him. So the 
boys talked the matter over, while the land 
became plainer and plainer, and at last Bill 
said: 

^^Let ’s have it over. Go down and ask your 
uncle what he thinks. Tell him I just canT get 
along without you.’^ 

Jack went down into the cabin, and found 
his uncle, sitting alone, with his head on his 
breast. The old man raised his head as the boy 
entered. 

say, uncle,^^ said Jack, ^^we^re almost to 
land, now, and Bill and me have been thinkin’ 
what we ’re goin’ to do. You see. Bill ’s going in 
the woods with Cousin Antoine, and he wants me 
to go with him. He says I ’m the only boy he 
ever liked, and says he ’d have a deal more fun if 
I went along. But I told him I dunno, because I 
could n’t say just what you wanted me to do. I 
thought maybe you ’d want me for something.” 

The captain looked at the boy solemnly, for a 
few minutes. 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 121 

“Wall, Jackie,’’ he finally said, “ye may jist ez 
well go with Scotty, for ye can’t do me much good. 
I reckon Scotty can do more fer ye than I can. 
So go with Van Lennep’s boy, if ye like, and look 
a’ter him a leetle, fer he ain’t so very strong, ye 
know. I ’ll give ye sum money afore ye go. I ’m 
a-goin’ ter stay here. Capting MacDonald is 
a-goin’ ter take me to Bosting. We won’t be here 
in Portland fer long — jist long enough fer sum 
hammerin’ on the bow-plates. Yes, I reckon ye 
can go, boy, fer all me. Now run along, do, for 
I ’ve got sumwhat ter think about.” And his 
head wearily sunk forward again. 

You may be sure that Jack made all speed to the 
bow, where he found Bill anxiously awaiting the 
outcome. 

“Hurrah!” cried Jack, shouting as he ran, “it ’s 
all right, Billy, I ’m going with you, if that wild 
cousin of mine don’t object, and I don’t think he 
will, fer I ’m pretty handy at campin’. Gee, I ’m 
glad!” 

“So ’ml!” declared Bill, no less pleased. “It 
will be slick having you along, instead of going 
off with somebody I ’d never seen before. We ’ve 
got to get rigs, too, camp fixin’s, you know. I ’m 


122 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

going to write a letter to Dad and mother right 
away, so nothing will keep us when we get to shore. 
I hope Scotty will be on hand when we get there. 
I just hate waiting for things to happen.^^ 

‘^So do I. Don’t you care about getting camp- 
fixin’s, for Cousin Antoine knows just what to get 
and what price to pay. You can’t fool him, I 
tell you! He ’s the queer one. He ’s half French, 
Canuck, you know, and he looks it, too. You just 
ought to hear him gabble it! Sounds like a 
chicken in a fit.” 

hate to think of losing that fine rifle,” said 
Bill, reminiscently. 

'^Hum, don’t you care about that rifle. It ain’t 
huntin’ season anjrway, but we might find a bear 
or two; they’re getting scandalous common here- 
abouts.” 

For a while the two boys talked over the things 
they were and were not going to do, watching the 
approaching shore with interest, although Bill was 
more than fascinated with the steamer itself, and 
frequently looked back upon her, admiring the 
steady manner in which she made her way through 
the water, so different from that of the bouncing 
sailing vessel. The Belgrade, in comparison. 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 123 


seemed human, and not so altogether to be de- 
pended upon, while the New Castle appeared to be 
acted upon by one of the great forces of nature, so 
persistently did she hold to her course, taking 
easily the long swells that followed her astern. 
Finally Bill persuaded Jack to follow him, and the 
two hung around the engine-hatch, until a good- 
natured engineer took them down into the hold, 
where they saw the great machines going smoothly 
as clock-work, and were well spattered with oil for 
their pains. Then they were shown one of the 
furnace rooms, where they got a layer of coal-dust 
over the oil, and were very happy. Then Jack 
returned to the bow, while Bill, who had borrowed 
paper and pen for the purpose, set himself to write 
a letter home. No easy task he found it, for 
already he was so different a boy from what he 
was when he left home, that he found himself 
almost unable to express himself to his own parents. 
Besides, he had made a great resolution, and, 
knowing why he had been sent away, wanted to 
surprise his relatives when he returned home. So 
he made a very brief letter of it. 

'^Dear folks, he wrote, ^Hhis is just a short note 
to tell you that I am all right. Had one ship- 


124 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


wreck already and now I am going to hunt bears. 
Maybe one will get me. Nothing much else to say. 
I left home in such a hurry that I forgot to say 
^ good-by/ so I ^11 say it now. With love, 
your son, Bill.’’ 

Bill looked over his letter with some satisfaction, 
thinking that it gave no inkling of his new outlook. 
But I might just as well break in to say that he 
did give himself away a little, for his father, who 
was as good a judge of men as could be found, saw 
in the brevity and humor of the letter some quali- 
ties not generally expected of the Willie of his 
acquaintance. Signs himself ^ Bill,’ too,” said 
Mr. Van Lennep to himself. “Thinks better of 
himself, perhaps, if he is getting the people about 
him to call him that instead of ^Willie.’” But all 
Mrs. Van Lennep saw in the letter were the words 
“ shipwreck,” and “ bears,” which gave her a bad 
case of nerves for at least three days. 

As the ship neared the harbor, the engines were 
gradually slowed down and finally, when the 
proper spot was reached, the boys were sent for, 
and a great anchor was sent plunging over with a 
considerable splashing and rattling of chain. No 
sooner was the ship swinging comfortably in the 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 125 


bay, than an important-looking tug came out to 
them, and for a while great confusion reigned. 
The customs officers came aboard, so did a post- 
office official, so did some newspaper reporters, and 
so did a great, broad-shouldered man in rough- 
looking garb, and with a broad felt hat resting 
rakishly on his black hair. Jack gave him one look 
and then shouted: 

^‘Whoopee! There ^s that crazy half -French 
cousin of mine! Come quick 

The woodsman was wandering about bewildered, 
when Jack called to him. Hey, Cousin Antoine ! 
upon which the man turned quickly and in a 
couple of great strides met them. 

^^Hillo, Jack,^’ said he, ^^been having quite some 
time, some excitement, what?^’ Then he looked 
at Bill, grinning wider than ever. understand 
dis is Villiam, is it not? I t^ink your Dad he mak^ 
one beeg mistake. He telegraph me, an^ good 
work it find me, I say; telegraph say ^ Get my 
son at Portland, from the New Castle,^ and a 
couple of day before he write, ^ Get my son at 
Falmouth, he ’s not much good, kinda Willie-boy. 
Take heem through the woods and mak^ a man of 
heem.d So I t’ink your fahder he mak^ one gran’ 


126 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

mistake, for I doan see no ' Willie-boy/ Maybe 
he drown on old Belgrade — what?’’ 

Bill was somewhat embarrassed, you may be 
sure, but took consolation in the fact that, clothed 
as he was, in nothing but blue cotton trousers, and 
short ones at that, a blue shirt and rough boots, he 
looked as little a Willie-boy ” as one could wish. 

guess that boy he speak of, he drown, hein?” 
chuckled Antoine. 

^^Sure,” murmured Bill, '^suppose he ’s drowned 
all right.” 

'^Your fahder he also telegraph to buy youah 
outfeet. All right, I get heem ver’ queek.” 

^^Look here, cousin,” said Jack, Bill wants 
me to go with him, and uncle says I may if you 
don’t mind. Uncle will pay for all my things. 
He says he don’t want me no more this summer. 
I ’ll be pretty handy about camp, I ’ll help a lot, 
I sure will, if you ’ll take me along.” 

^‘1 dunno,” said Antoine, scratching his head, 
^^but I t’ink dats some pretty good idea. Pretty 
slow, I say, for a boy to spen’ some weeks wit’ a 
grown man laike me. So come alon’, mon gars. 
Now tak’ me to your pore ol’ uncle. Hard luck, 
I call it, ciel! ver’ hard luck!” 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 127 

So Jack took Antoine down to where his uncle 
still sat, and left him there, and for a while the 
two heads nodded together, the one gruff and 
discouraged, the other kind and sympathetic. 
After Captain Seawell had told all about his mis- 
fortunes, and concluded that he would undoubt- 
edly end his days digging clams, the subject turned 
to Bill. 

'^That boy ’s all right,’^ said the captain, '^only 
ye see they more ’n haff spoiled him ter death, till 
he thought he wuz the biggest thing the other 
side Bunker Hill Moniment. We tuk him down 
sum, the fust day out, and the next, an^ I reckon he 
ain^t so bad as his pap thought he wuz. Now I 
tell ye, Antoine, that there kid has never stood on 
his own feet in his life. Always somebody a-prop- 
pin’ him. Enough to spoil the angel Gabriel, I 
dare ter goodness! Now you jist get him ter stand 
alone, an^ his old man won’t fergit, I tell ye.” 

^^All right, I ’ll mak’ heem stand on hees own 
feet. Jackie comes alon’ too, hein? He will be 
ver good boy to help, hees been to camp wit’ me 
afore.” 

The two men pow-wowed over the two boys for 
a while, after which Antoine was given some money 


128 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


for Jack^s outfit. ^^Got enuff for Van Lennep^s 
boy; hees fahder sent a beeg pile by telegraf. 
Don’t need such a beeg pile.” 

^‘Wall, I guess he can afford ter give his boy all 
the fancy fixin’s he wants, Antoine.” 

“Was a man,” said Antoine, reflectively, “wat 
came up dis way fer to feesh. I tak heem back, 
back, to some very fine place. He got such a pile 
of money. Got a rod for feesh all covered wit’ 
silver-platin’, such a pile of fancy fixin’s he had! 
So he feesh an’ feesh, all one day, an’ my boy, 
Raimon’, wit’ a rod he cut by the bank, he catch 
free, four beeg feesh, and dis riche man, he not 
catch any. Pouf! Fancy fixin’s!” 

“Wall, ye know yer own business best, I reckon, 
same as I know mine. So take him along, and 
make it so as he can git home about the end of 
September.” 

After a little more discussion, Antoine left the 
old man, and went on deck, where he found the 
two boys watching with interest the preparations 
for making a temporary patch, with sheet iron, over 
the gaping rent in the bow. 

“All right, boys,” said he, “ I s’pose it ’s time 
for us to go way fer de woods, what? Dis here 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 129 


tugboat goin^ to go, I t’ink, about now, so be 
queek an^ get youah t’ings, an’ say good-by to 
de or captain.” 

Pleased enough, the boys scuttled away, shook 
hands with Captain Seawell, who tried to seem 
interested, and who wished them luck, and then 
ran off to join Antoine at the side, where the tug 
was taking off a few of those most anxious to get 
ashore. The boys brought no baggage with them, 
for the simple reason that they did not own any. 
And Bill was quite unaware, as he clambered 
down the side in his few rough clothes, that he 
was pointed out to many, to the raising of numer- 
ous eyebrows, as the son of the rich John Van 
Lennep. There was no doubt but that he was 
far from looking it. 

Soon the tug was set loose, and with a great 
puffing and snorting made its way to a wharf, 
where all were landed. Here they were joined by 
a handsome, black-haired boy of thirteen, whom 
Jack greeted delightedly. 

This boy wore brown corduroys that reached half 
way down from his knees, moccasins that made 
Bill green with envy, and a heavy blue flannel 
shirt. 


130 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


“Hello, Raimon!’^ cried Jack, grabbing the boy 
by the shoulders, “ I did n^t know you were here! 
Goin’ with us? I hope you are. Bill, this is 
Raimon, Cousin Antoine’s son. What he don’t 
know about campin’ ain’t worth shucks.” 

Bill seemed attracted to Raimon right away, 
and held ovit a hand which the new boy took 
bashfully. Indeed, this boy seemed very dubious 
about talking even, for he satisfied himself for 
quite a while by nodding and smiling when any 
remarks were addressed to him, and I might add 
that his smile, set off, as it was by brilliant, white 
teeth, was enough to warm any one’s heart to him 
at once. 

The four now set off at a good pace and soon 
arrived at a rather dingy part of the town, with 
which Antoine seemed well acquainted, and here, 
in a little shop filled with all kinds of curious and 
smelly camp-goods, the kind used by real campers, 
and not the silver-plated city sort. Bill and Jack 
were provided with heavy corduroy trousers, 
much like Raimon’s, strong, high moccasins, soft 
felt hats, a heavy blanket each, a rubber poncho 
each, then knives, iron forks, and a few tin goods, 
to which collection Antoine added a fair little com^ 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 131 

pass for each boy. These, with a few other essen- ' 
tials, made up the outfit that the experienced 
camper thought necessary for the boys, and then 
with their goods done up in large packages, they 
went to a little French cafe where they were 
treated to dishes quite unknown to Bill, but which 
he devoured heartily. 

Then they went to a curious provision store, 
where Antoine purchased a great pack of things 
which they carried themselves, and at last off 
they went in a train, which, late that afternoon, 
left them at a most hopeless, desolate spot, near 
the border of New Hampshire. 

Bill had felt lonely on his first day at sea, but this 
seemed to be the loneliest place he had ever known. 
There were few signs of civilization beyond the 
bare box of a three-sided station,’’ a little two- 
story white-painted tavern, and absolutely the 
worst-looking rutty road he had ever seen in his 
life. Jack did not seem dismayed, however. 

Where are we goin’?” he asked. “Guess 
we ’ll put in on Round-Top for the night, won’t 
we?” 

“Oui, mon gars, Roun’-Top, dat ’s where we ’re 
a-goin’,” replied Antoine. “Now, boys, you go 


132 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


by dem bush there an’ put on some new clo’s, 
w’ile Raimon an’ me ’ll git some t’ings in this ’ere 
house. Venez, Raimon,” and the two went into the 
tavern. 

'^All right, Bill, come along and get some de- 
cent clothes on,” said Jack, making for the bushes 
pointed out by Antoine. Behind this shelter they 
made a quick change, to their great satisfaction. 
Then Jack showed Bill how to make a long roll of 
his blanket and poncho, inclosing within the folds 
their smaller bits of baggage, and then swinging 
the whole over one shoulder, strapping the two 
ends almost together at the other side. To their 
belts they fastened sharp hunting-knives in their 
leather sheaths, and Bill, who never had owned 
one, looked down at his frequently with great 
pride. At last, all equipped, with their old clothes 
in a bundle, they sallied forth in time to see An- 
toine issue from the tavern with a truly enormous 
pack, followed by Raimon, who also carried one 
not to be despised. After them came the tavern- 
keeper, evidently of Antoine’s race, for they kept 
up a great chatter in the queer French of the 
Canucks. 

Antoine smiled approvingly upon the boys. 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 133 


pretty good, dat. So give youah oV 
things to fidouard here, for hees boys. They no 
good for you, no more.” They gave their discarded 
clothes, thereupon, to fidouard, who said, ''Merci” 
a couple of times, bobbing his head; then they all 
shouldered their packs, Antoine hoisting his mon- 
strous one to his shoulders with a great grunt, 
and off they jogged down the rugged road, at 
about four o^clock in the afternoon. 

Bill thought he had seen woods and rough coun- 
try before, but he never saw anything quite like 
that through which they were soon passing. For 
these were forests in real earnest, thick, dark, and 
heavy, forests of tall, straight pine, with a thick 
undergrowth of young trees. The trees closed in 
on both sides of the road like a wall, and Bill 
thought to himself if ever there was a great place 
for wild Indians, or bear, or any terrifying wood- 
creature, this place was surely its equal. Then 
the odor of the woods was something to be remem- 
bered, the rich, wonderful odor of pine and cedar, 
such as many poor, hot, city folk would almost 
give their souls for! 

On they went, steadily enough, until Bill began 
to find his blanket-roll heavier than he had ex- 


134 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


pected, though he shifted it from shoulder to 
shoulder now and then, as he saw Jack do. And 
yet they went on and on, with never a suggestion 
of stopping for rest, until Bill began to get a little 
angry, and to wonder if Antoine thought they 
were horses, to trot for miles and miles with such 
packs on their backs. I doubt if his late training 
would have been sufficient to have kept him from 
finally making an indignant protest, but what 
actually saved him was the sudden realization 
that little Raimon, almost two years his junior, 
was carrying, without a murmur, and without evi- 
dent discomfort, a pack fully twice as heavy as his 
own. Seeing which he gritted his teeth and 
brought up the end of the procession — for they 
were walking single file — in a manner quite 
creditable, when all is considered. But when, 
after an hour of walking, they suddenly came to a 
fine, smooth little stream, and Antoine threw his 
pack to the ground on the banks. Bill breathed 
such a sigh of relief that Jack actually giggled, 
and then slung his blankets to the ground and sat 
heavily upon them. 

“Hillo!’’ chuckled Antoine, smiling, “some 
pretty much tired, now, what? Never min^ for 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 135 


now we go a-boating, eef somebody has n^t taken 
my boat. Suppose you wait.’’ Leaving with them 
his pack and heavy rifle, Antoine plunged into 
the woods, and they could hear him crashing 
through the undergrowth, evidently following the 
stream, and at last, far away, they heard a cheery 
shout, ^‘All right! All right!” and then quiet for 
a while. 

^^That ’s good!” exclaimed Raimon, who spoke 
for the first time, ^^he’s foun’ that boat. Nice 
boat, too.” 

^^Sure it is,” agreed Jack, ’ve been in it more 
than once.” 

^^Mon pere, he lef’ it here this spring, he said,” 
continued Raimon, who spoke in a gentle tone, not 
such as one would expect from a woods-boy.” 
^^He lef’ it here this spring, but nobody comes 
here ver’ much.” 

Just then they heard > faint splashing, and 
looking toward the stream, beheld Antoine al- 
most at the bank, seated in the stern of a long, 
narrow canoe, roughly made of cedar and canvas, 
but every bit as graceful as the beautiful ones of 
Indian manufacture. He ran its nose upon the 
bank, where he had discovered a good landing- 


136 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


place, and Raimon steadied the boat as his father 
leaped from it. For a few minutes they were busily 
employed in stowing their baggage scientifically, 
then at last they entered it themselves, Antoine, 
as usual, in the stern, with Raimon at the bow. 
Raimon gave a strong push upon his paddle, that 
sent the long boat away from the bank, and then 
the two, the father and son, with long, easy sweeps, 
forced the canoe steadily up-stream, while our two 
boys sat on the bottom, among the bundles. 
Bill was rather afraid to move, for, to him, the 
canoe seemed very unsteady, and likely to tip 
over at any minute, and indeed Antoine had 
warned him about jumping about. After a while 
Jack took Raimon^s place, and carefully the two 
boys climbed around each other, though the boat 
never ceased its onward sweep, for the tireless 
Antoine sent it powerfully along, seemingly indif- 
ferent as to whether any one were paddling at 
the bow, or not. 

The first haze of twilight was beginning to de- 
scend upon them, when Antoine, with a shout, 
drove the canoe far up upon a shallow, shelving 
beach. Bill was almost asleep, but he aroused 
himself in time to aid in carrying the various 



The boat never ceased its onward sweep. 

Page 136. 






THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 137 


packages, for, as soon as the canoe had been 
drawn far up to Antoine^s liking, they began to 
climb a woody hill that came down to the water’s 
edge. Really, Bill thought his legs would bend 
beneath him through weariness, but summoning 
all his grit, he pushed upward, right at Raimon’s 
heels, and, just when he felt as though he were 
going to tumble over, they arrived at the crest of 
the hill, a round, treeless little space, covered by 
a luxurious growth of grass. Again Bill gave a 
sigh of relief, as he swung down his pack, and 
then, for a few minutes, he stood silent, looking 
toward the west, for this hill raised them a little 
above the surrounding country. Bill saw, in the 
golden light of the sunset, a marvelous country 
of forests, with a clear stream winding its ser- 
pentine way among the little hills, reflecting all 
the wonders of the western sky. And far away 
were the mountains, on whose purple tops the 
red sun was kindling its evening fires. A strange 
thrill seemed to go through the boy as he gazed, 
and finally he sighed again, and the appreciative 
Antoine realized the feeling behind that sigh. 

‘^Ah, yes, eet ees beautiful. Le bon Dieu has 
made one wonderfu’ t’ing w’en he make the sky 


138 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


w’en the sun he goes down. Makes me, Antoine, 
feel laike a ver^ good man.’^ 

Bill felt the same feeling that Antoine so rudely 
expressed, and wondered how there could be any- 
thing purposely ugly or unclean in the world. 
And so he marveled a moment, and then came 
quickly to himself, for Antoine had set to w’ork. 
He sent Jack down after water, and sent Raimon 
into the woods for firewood, and before you could 
count a hundred, it seemed, they were sitting 
down around the red fire in the darkness, eating 
plentifully of bacon, roast potatoes, and hard 
crackers, and Bill vowed he had never eaten any- 
thing half so delicious. But he almost nodded him- 
self into the fire, and, to tell the truth, the other 
boys were not much better off. So when the sup- 
per was cleared away, and the utensils strictly 
cleaned — Antoine saw that they were — the 
ponchos were laid flat on the ground, and the 
boys, rolled in their blankets, lay down upon them, 
though Antoine sat for a while by the fire, smok- 
ing a pipe. 

Although Bill had thought himself so tired, now 
that he could sleep if he wished, he seemed unable 
to do so. The whole surroundings were too new 


THE SEA TURNS OVER THE JOB 139 


and strange. First of all, there was the forest 
about them, so dark and still, except for a faint 
snapping, now and then, as though some wild 
creature were there, cautiously picking its way in 
the dark. If there is anything more still or weird 
than a great forest on a quiet night, I would like 
to know what it is. Used to it as I am, it always 
gives me the feeling of awe that it gave Bill, as he 
lay there, trembling, he knew not why. Then 
there was the stream, which he could hear faintly, 
as it occasionally sobbed or gurgled in the dark; 
but he rather liked this sound, for it seemed friendly 
and comforting. And then there were the night- 
birds, plaintive and mysterious. And, last of all, 
there were the stars overhead, and Bill was not 
used to sleeping on the ground, with the stars 
looking down upon him. It was all very uncanny, 
though the other boys did not seem to notice it, 
for they were both plainly asleep, one on either 
side of him, and Antoine, smoking by the fire, did 
not seem to notice it either, but Bill feared that he 
would never be able to sleep on account of it, and 
no sooner thought so than his eyes closed, and he 
was sleeping as soundly as any. 


CHAPTER VIII 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 

How long Bill slept he did not know. All he did 
know was that he awoke suddenly, and found him- 
self quite as widely awake as ever he had been in 
his life. And it was the middle of the night, too, 
with the cool, bright stars shining down on him. 
He had come to himself feeling within his breast 
the curious thrill that comes with the sense of ap- 
proaching danger; there was a sinking of his heart 
for which he, at first, could attribute no cause. 
And then he heard the sound that must have 
warned him in his sleep. There was a rustling and 
crackling a little way down the hillside. Now this 
alone would not have been very alarming, for any 
stray horse might have made the very same sound. 
But, as he listened, half in doubt as to the reality 
of his being awake at all, he heard, amid the 
crackling, a low, guttural ‘^Whooff,^^ and then 
once again, as though the animal, whatever kind 
it was, was displeased, ^^Whooff 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 


141 


BilPs heart actually came near stopping. And 
you need not sneer at him either, for there are few 
boys, even though used to being in the woods, and 
sleeping on the ground, who would hear such a 
crackling and ^^whooffing^^ without having chills 
run up and down their back-bones. To tell the 
truth, they went up and down BilFs at an alarming 
rate, so that he was truly scared stiff, afraid to 
move his head, for fear of attracting the attention 
of the animal, whatever it was. 

At last the creature seemed to be going away, and 
BilFs fainting heart began to pluck up courage, and 
he thought that soon he could dare to poke Antoine. 
You may imagine his dismay, then, when he heard 
the noise suddenly grow louder and louder, as the 
animal evidently came straight up the hill. 

A myriad of thoughts rushed through his mind, 
as he lay there, unable to move, thoughts of his 
home, of Bully Fairfax, of stories of man-eating 
tigers and I don’t know what different kinds of 
jungle beasts. And all the while he was frightfully 
conscious that this particular beast was making 
for them surely and steadily, now and then giving 
vent to the low, grumbling “Whooff!” Finally, 
the animal seemed to be almost on top of them. 


142 , BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


and Bill had just nerved himself to shout at An- 
toine, when there came suddenly a great ^^Bang!’’ 
that made him jump I tell you, and I will add that 
Jack and Raimon jumped no less agilely, to behold 
Antoine sitting near the red embers of the fire with 
his rifle across his knees, and a grim smile on his 
face, while down the hill a little way was the 
greatest scrambling, snorting and coughing that 
mortal boy ever heard. 

The three boys looked speechlessly from Antoine 
to the direction from which the sound came, and 
back again, and at last Jack said: 

“Sufferin’ sausages! Nice way to wake a feller 
up! What have you done — shot an elephant — 
or a rhinoceros?” 

“Ho,” said Raimon, who was beginning to smile, 
“that mak’ two fer dis year, I think.” 

“So, eet ees two, mon gars. Some pretty good 
shot I mak’, hein?” 

Down the hill the scrambling gradually ceased, 
but the snorting and coughing continued a while, 
and the very sound of it made Bill’s hair stand 
upright. 

“What is it?” he asked, trembling. “Gee, 
maybe I was n’t frightened!” 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 


143 


^^Eet ees what you call some little bear. He 
come up dis a-way, an^ ole Scotty keep one ear 
open all night, hein? Yes, so I wait, an’ wait, an’ 
by-em-by up come m’sieu’ bear. He smelled our 
bacon, oui, eet smelled good to heem. So I — I 
pull my good little gun out, an’ mak’ no soun’, so 
when the bear he come, I take him t’rough both 
lungs. I t’ink he about dead now.” 

Indeed, as they listened, the coughs gave place 
to groans, very human ones, too, and finally all 
sound ceased, and the woods were as still as before. 

'^Pretty dead, hein? T’ink I ’ll go look an’ see 
heem.” 

Scotty, or rather, Antoine, for it seems ridicu- 
lous to call such a true Canuck Scotty,” even 
though it was his father’s name — Antoine blew 
into the embers of the fire, and soon made himself 
a blazing torch of pine. This accomplished, he 
started off, and the boys, curious as he,, but not at 
all liking to remain alone in camp, went dubiously 
after him, one of them, at least, still shaking from 
the fright he had had. Down they went, single file, 
picking their way carefully in the dark, Antoine’s 
torch burning fitfully before them, and at last they 
came to where the bushes were visibly torn and 


144 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


broken. Peering into a little hollow, they saw 
the object of their search, at a glimpse of which. 
Bill and Jack started back, for the big brown beast 
they found crouching there seemed just on the 
point of rushing at them, so fiercely did its eyes 
blaze in the light of the torch, and so white did the 
great teeth glitter in the half-open jaws. But 
Antoine marched boldly down to it, and pushed 
it with his foot till it rolled half over, plainly as 
dead as a bear could very well be. Then, although 
the forbidding-looking woods about them might 
contain a whole regiment of bears lying in wait, 
the three boys, and particularly Jack and Bill, 
became more and more pleased over the affair, and 
eventually became so bold as to examine the great 
beast themselves, actually looking into his mouth, 
and admiring the bigness of his white teeth. 

^^Gee, what a whopper! I guess he ’d a made 
mince-meat out of us, would nT he, Antoine?^’ 
cried Jack. 

^^No, mon gars,’^ replied Antoine smiling, calmly 
lighting his pipe by means of his now dwindling 
torch, ^‘dese here bears donT offen eat peoples, 
only eef they wake up in winter an^ are hongry. 
Den maybe so, but not so many times, I tfink. 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 


145 


Dis here bear, he jus^ smell bacon, and so come. 
Big fool bear, I say. All right. Bien. Viens, 
done. We ’ll sleep some more.” 

So back they went up the hill to their camping- 
ground, where Antoine threw some more wood on 
the fire, which became very comforting, and then 
they all rolled themselves in their blankets again. 
But only Antoine and his son seemed to sleep 
right away, for Bill and Jack, wide-eyed, and ex- 
cited almost beyond words, chatted until Jack 
began to answer in monosyllables. Bill, this time, 
was quite positive that he could never get to sleep; 
even after Jack ceased his murmuring replies and 
dozed off, he lay wide awake, expecting every 
minute to hear another crackling in the brush, 
or another astounding bang from Antoine’s rifle. 
Yet sleep he actually did, and so soundly that 
Jack had shaken him steadily for some time before 
he managed to get his eyes open. 

^^Come on, sleepy-head!” shouted Jack, ^^come, 
get a good plunge before breakfast!” and away 
he went, downhill. Bill following dubiously after, 
for the morning, though clear, was quite cool, and 
he shivered at the idea of jumping into that cold 
water. He followed Jack, however, past the bear. 


146 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


that still lay in a ridiculously foolish attitude on its 
side, down to the stream, where Jack, tearing off his 
clothes, plunged in with a shout that woke the 
echoes, and coming to the surface, swam straight 
across, with long, clean strokes. Meanwhile, Bill 
stood hesitating on the bank. He had his clothes 
off, but he was alternately trying one foot and 
then the other in the water, each time quickly 
drawing the foot out with a shiver. How long he 
would have stood there I do not know, but all of a 
sudden he got a strong shove from behind that 
sent him sprawling into the stream, as Raimon, 
like a brown shadow, dove over him, entered the 
water almost silently, to appear many yards away. 
Bill came half angry, half pleased, to the smfface, 
stood in water up to his neck, and rubbed the 
moistme from his eyes in time to see Jack hope- 
lessly beaten in a race with Raimon, who seemed 
literally to flash through the water, and so easily, 
that he made Jack’s best efforts seem almost 
ridiculous, — and Jack was no slouch, either, as the 
Gloucester boys would have told you. Finally 
they both swam up to Bill and then stood there 
breathless. 

“I say, Raimon,” cried Jack, between gasps, 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 


147 


'‘have n’t forgotten that blessed old stroke, have 
you? Gee, it ’s a terror! It beats the Dutch how 
you get along.” 

Modest little Raimon almost seemed to blush. 
"Yes,” said he, "purty good stroke. Indian 
show me that there stroke free year ago. Indian 
he named Miquelon, he told me eet was the otter 
stroke, what the otter make. Mebbe I show you 
— sometime.” And then he smiled cunningly, 
for he had no idea of giving away a secret which 
gave him at least one superiority to his rough 
and tumble, not to say decidedly husky, friend. 

Then they all began to swim. Bill floundering 
slowly along, with great good will and splashing, 
but little progress, while the other two raced 
about in the cool, crystalline water, until a deep 
voice called from the hilltop, "Yen’ ici, enfants! 
Hi, boys! Breakfus!” So out they came upon 
the bank, and jumped about to shake the worst 
of the water from their bodies, and you may be 
interested to learn that Bill secretly took stock of 
the physical development of the other two, com- 
paring them with himself, with the result that he 
was not quite pleased, and decided to avail him- 
self of every chance to make himself as good as 


148 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


they were. Even little Raimon was undoubt- 
edly his superior, for Raimon^s chest was round 
and full, his shoulders square, and his arms and 
legs well equipped with a beautiful set of muscles. 
In spite of his superior size. Bill would have hesi- 
tated before engaging in a wrestling match with 
that frisky youngster. 

Then the boys threw on their clothes and raced 
up the hill, to find Antoine working miracles with 
a frying-pan and some golden powder taken from 
a large tin. Furthermore, there seemed to be 
some good meat sizzling in a little grid propped 
over the fire. The powder proved to be evapo- 
rated eggs, and a first class scramble” Antoine 
made of them, and, as for the meat, it was a piece 
of bear, and I tell you it did smell good to those 
ravenous boys! 

^^Bear not ver^ good dis time,” said Antoine, 
‘^but we try a leetle of heem, an^ dat teach heem 
not to be so fonny to come bodering us at night — 
hein? Yes.” So he gave them scrambled eggs, 
potatoes, cocoa, and each a slice of juicy bear- 
meat, which, to their appetites, seemed quite 
delicious, and I need not tell you, I suppose, that 
they did full justice to the meal, and almost 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 


149 


licked the platters after them. After breakfast 
each boy helped clean up. Then the fire was put 
out with water and Antoine showed them how to 
pack some of the provisions away in their blanket- 
rolls, making the latter look like well-stuffed 
sausages. Then they went down to the bear. 

^^Ver^ bad luck,’^ said Antoine, “we canT tak^ 
him hide. We tak^ somethin^ for Billee, here, for 
he nevair saw a bear before, I tfink.^’ So with his 
sharp hunting-knife he removed the beards tail, 
took the hide off neatly, scraping it and then 
salting it, finally tucking it away into BilFs pack, 
to the great pleasure of Bill, you may be sure. 

Once down on the shore, Antoine drew from 
his pocket a map, pasted on strong linen, and 
called the boys around him. 

“Look,’’ said he, “I show you where we go. I, 
me, don’t need no map, but I show you because 
it good for you. See, here we are now,” pointing 
to a spot on the map, “an’ so we go, a leetle on 
dis water here, an’ then we march an’ march, 
alway’ west, and finalment we see the so beauti- 
ful lake — Champlain. An’ den we go sout’, an’ 
so I send you boys home. Bon, behol’!” and he 
pointed out their prospective path on the map, 


150 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


which was an excellent government one, showing 
roads, streams, hills, and even houses. ^^Now 
we go,’^ said the guide. ^^This las^ day for the 
canoe. 

The packs were scientifically placed in the 
boat, and then they all carefully got in, this time 
with Bill at the bow, using a paddle for the first 
time in his life, and for a while seeming to put 
most of his strength into throwing water over 
his companions, which he did with great success. 

cried Antoine, at last, ^^ver’ nice shower 
we have for July! Not? Yes?^^ 

^^Cur’us thing, rain,’’ quoth Jack, from his nest 
in the baggage, “sometimes comes from a per- 
fectly clear sky.” 

“Ho!” spluttered Raimon, getting a pint of 
water in his face, “wat you t’ink this is? Some 
water-picnic?” 

To do Billy credit, he replied not one word, 
but bent his back to the work in hand with an 
energy that left him breathless in fifteen minutes. 
Soon he began changing his paddle from side to 
side at short intervals, feeling with some chagrin 
that though his own efforts were of less and less 
value, the canoe seemed to be speeding through 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 


151 


the water as powerfully as ever; indeed he could 
feel distinctly the shove that came when An- 
toine’s paddle entered the stream. At last, 
totally bereft of breath and endurance, he had 
to give up the fight, resting his paddle across the 
bow. 

‘^Some pretty hard work, no?” chuckled An- 
toine. A week or so ago such a humbling of his 
pride would have called forth no gentle or polite 
answer, so it was to the credit of his late experi- 
ences that Bill merely gave a shamefaced ^^Yes,” 
and crept back, letting Raimon take his place. 
His private disgust for himself became no less, 
either, when he found that the youngster paddled 
an hour or more, apparently without tiring, 
while Bill’s shoulders and arms ached abominably. 

After a while Antoine gave a loud sniff, and said, 
^‘Pretty soon we have ver’ big job, Billee. Eet 
ees what you call a ^portage.’ The water he fall 
hereabout.” In the air was the fresh, distinct 
smell of broken water, such as one notices near 
waterfalls, and on the sea-shore. Bill noticed it 
plainly, and then there came to his ears a rustling 
sound that became louder and louder. Finally 
they came upon the falls. It was really little 


152 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


more than a series of rapids, where, for a hundred 
feet, perhaps, the water came tumbhng down 
over rocks and boulder, and a beautiful sight it 
was, in its setting of dark pines and bright blue 
sky. 

They found a httle beach, and pushing the 
nose of the canoe upon it, they unloaded all the 
baggage, and then drew the canoe up on the 
ground. The baggage was then distributed be- 
tween Raimon and Bill, and the latter noticed, 
though he said nothing, that the former had, if 
anything, rather the larger pack of the two, upon 
which he resolved to do his duty, whatever it 
was, manfully. Antoine then got under the bow 
of the canoe, and Jack under the other end, and 
between them they hoisted it upon their shoulders, 
and started off, slowly, along a narrow, over- 
grown trail, that ran beside the stream. Bill and 
Raimon followed close behind. For the first 
time in his life Bill was experiencing real work. 
His load weighed fully fifty pounds, and he really 
thought, after a few minutes’ walking, that his 
back would break; and finally it was only the 
memory of Raimon’s larger load, borne so pa- 
tiently by the little fellow following behind, that 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 


153 


kept Bill quiet and steadily at work, though the 
perspiration ran down his forehead into his eyes, 
and each step seemed as though it would be his 
last. In fact, when he was sure he was about to 
drop, the canoe-bearers before him stepped out 
suddenly upon the upper bank of the stream 
above the falls, and Bill immediately sat upon 
the ground, too tired even to take the bmden 
from his back for several minutes. 

They all rested for a while until Antoine cheer- 
ily said All right, and then they shd the canoe 
into the water, packed it as before, and got in, 
only Jack took the bow paddle now, stripping to 
the waist before taking his position, and off they 
went again. 

If Bill ever admired Jack and envied him, it 
was now, as he watched the play of the latter ^s 
back, shoulder, and arm muscles, working 
smoothly under the fine brown skin. It was no 
wonder, indeed, that Jack had so easily bundled 
him about that time in their little cabin, an ex- 
perience that already seemed to belong to ancient 
history, so many events had happened since that 
time. The result of it all was that Bill was more 
determined than ever to become as strong as Jack, 


154 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


and soon, to the surprise of every one in the boat, 
he asked to be allowed to take another turn at 
the paddle, which the astonished Antoine gave 
him. And Bill had learned a little by watching 
Jack and Raimon, for he was not a dull boy, was 
Bill, but had been merely a badly spoiled one. 
So he now began to paddle easily, copying the 
motions used by his more experienced compan- 
ions, with the result that he splashed no longer, 
and put enough effort into his work to accomplish 
good results without exhausting himself. In 
fact it was not far from being an hour when he 
relinquished the paddle to Raimon, and, with a 
sigh, took up a comfortable position on the 
blankets, and went promptly to sleep. 

All this time the stream had been getting nar- 
rower and narrower, so that when lunch time 
came, it was hardly half the width it had been 
when they took their morning plunge. After a 
good meal, in the preparation of which Bill was 
allowed to assist, they started off again, the 
afternoon bringing little but a round of paddling 
and no less than two stiff portages. All the while 
the stream was becoming smaller and smaller, 
until it took all of Antoine^s skill and strength 


THE WOODS TAKE A HAND 


155 


to get them through the many shallows they en- 
countered. Once or twice they had to take off 
their moccasins, roll up their trousers, and get 
out to push with all their might, to help the canoe 
over rifts of mud into which they had ploughed. 
At last they came to where canoeing was impos- 
sible, for the stream was broken into long series 
of little rapids and shallows, impassable for any- 
thing but a very ambitious and energetic fish. 
So they took the canoe from the water, made a 
hidden shelter for it of thick cedar boughs, and, 
shouldering their packs, started off on their long 
tramp westward toward the Green Mountains 
and Lake Champlain. 


CHAPTER IX 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 

It was rather late in the afternoon when they 
left their canoe and started away on a rough but 
not very difficult trail. Although Bill felt very 
weary, he kept doggedly tramping, resolved not 
to lag a single step of the way. For a while they 
went around fair, round, cedar-covered hills, 
and, after an hour^s walk, they came to the first 
sign of civilization seen since leaving the railroad. 
Near a pretty little mountain lake was a diminu- 
tive farmhouse, white painted, of course, and 
standing before a large, red barn, the whole being 
surrounded by a little clearing which occupied 
the side of a hill. 

^^Ah-h-h,^^ said Antoine, ‘‘that Eddie Polkas 
house. I s’pose we stay in Eddie Polk’s hay all 
night. Ole Mis’ Polk, she know how to make 
fine what-you-call pan-cakes. Hongry, boys, 
hein?” 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 157 


In spite of aching limbs and feet, the idea of 
food and sleep stimulated the party so that it 
struck up a fairly respectable gait, which they 
kept up until Antoine knocked on the rough 
door of the farmhouse. It was opened by Eddie 
Polk in person — an ancient gentleman, with 
thin face, long white beard, long thin neck, 
long thin body, and with long thin legs fitted 
into as enormous a pair of boots as the sun ever 
shone on. Eddie greeted them with a broad 
grin. 

^^Well, ^pon my soul!’^ cried Eddie Polk. ‘'My 
land, Susie, if here are n^t Toine Scott and three 
young kids!’^ 

“Doo tell!’^ came a shrill voice from the house, 
and there soon appeared beside Eddie none other 
than Susie herself, who was just as short and 
stout as Eddie was tall and thin, only more so, 
if possible. 

“M^sieu Polk,” said Antoine, as with sweeping 
bow he took his cap from his head, “we see you 
an’ madame your wife bot’ well? No?” 

“Fair ter middlin’, fair ter middlin’, thank-ee,” 
replied Eddie. “But what are you doing in these 
here parts? Killin’ deer and catchin’ trout, out 


158 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


o’ season, I reckon. Don’t talk t’ me! Ye want 
ter hev a care, ’cause I ’m game-warden here- 
abouts.” And he grinned from ear to ear. 

^^Ho,” said Antoine, “an’ that ’s why the deer 
so scarce, hein? An’ no use lookin’ for feesh, 
M’sieu’ Polk, when you have feeshed ’em all out 
yourself. No deer, no feesh. All we see ees one 
beeg bear — ver’ beeg bear. He come an’ wake 
us up las’ night, so I have to keel heem.” 

“Wal, I ’dare!” cried Susie, vehemently, “it 
do beat all how sassy them bears do git!” 

“Yaas,” continued Eddie, “Susie here caught 
one t’ other mornin’, tryin’ ter climb inter the 
hawg-pen. I ’m biled and salted if she did n’t 
go and hit him a rap on the nose with a piece of 
bean-pole, yas, you bet, and kept a-beatin’ and a- 
pokin’ of him till he fair ran for it, an’ has n’t 
come back since!” 

At this Antoine leaned back his head and roared 
with laughter, in which all the others joined 
heartily, Susie with the rest. 

“Wall,” continued Eddie, “I know what ye ’re 
wantin’ here to-night. Ye want some good grub, 
arid a snug bed in the hay-mow. Not much hay 
there yet, but you ’re welcome to what there is. 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 159 


ez fer grub, I guess our Susie can do sumpthin^ 
hey Sue?^’ 

’dare there ’s not much fancy in the house, 
but if it ’s good plain vittels you want, I reckon 
we can do sumpthin’. Now do git a move on, 
Ed, an’ milk them cows, and you boys can take 
your things over to the barn, an’ then come back 
and split me some good kindlin’s, and make 
youselves useful as well as orn’mental.” Off 
went Susie to her stove, from which a great clat- 
ter began to arise. Off went Eddie to milk the 
cows, and Antoine went with him to help. And 
off went the boys to the barn with their packs, 
soon to return and make a fine little pile of kind- 
lings, in which occupation, however. Bill aided 
very little, for he was so tired that he could 
hardly keep his eyes open. 

Soon appetizing smells began to come from 
the house, just as the two men came from the cow- 
shed with the milk, and, before long, they all sat 
down to as plain and as wholly satisfactory a 
meal as Bill had ever known. Never had he 
tasted such excellent bread and butter, such 
crisp, crackling bacon, such delicious beans, pota- 
toes, and honey-cake! For a while they ate almost 


160 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


in silence, and the amount that Bill got away 
with would have frightened his mother, could 
she have seen it, out of a whole night^s sleep. 
Antoine, the farmer, and the latter’s amiable 
wife kept up what conversation there was, until 
no one could eat any more, and then the boys 
were taken to the barn, escorted to the hay-mow, 
in which they buried themselves, and there fell 
asleep almost before Antoine had left them, to 
return and smoke a pipe with Eddie and talk 
over old times. 

For a while they discussed hunting expedi- 
tions of long ago, the different men whom An- 
toine had taken through the wild Maine and New 
Hampshire forests, and finally they worked down 
to the present day. 

^^Takin’ them pretty young, ’Toine, ain’t ye?” 
said Eddie. ^^What ’s the matter — all the men 
giv out? That young Raimon of yours is jist 
sproutin’ up so as ye can almost see him do it. I 
know him! But who be the other two, if I may 
be so bold as ter ask?” 

Then Antoine told how the husky one was his 
cousin,, and the other the son of a certain John 
Van Lennep, ‘^a ver’ reech man.” He had been 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 161 


guide for Mr. Van Lennep several times in the 
past, and now he was given Van Lennep^s son to 
make a man of him. '^Hees father think heem 
no good, got no what-you-call sand — too much 
Willie-boy — comprenez? So we go west and see 
the pretty little lakes in Hampshire and Ver- 
mont and mebbe we see Champlain, and mebbe 
no. Anyway we make the grand tramp, not? 
Make a man of heem, an’ make good money for 
Antoine. Ha — everybody please’.” 

d’clare,” said Susie, who had been listening 
with interest, ^Hhat boy’s dad’s got good sense. 
I guess most rich folk air afraid t’ leave their sons 
gallivantin’ about the wooks, like. So keep ’em 
home and spile ’em. Nice-lookin’ boy, too, but 
not powerful strong yet, I dare say.” 

‘^Not ver’ strong — yet,” replied Antoine, 
^^but he’s gettin’ strong queek, for I see how 
hard he work, when he think I ’m not lookin’ at 
heem.” 

For a while longer they talked on the diminu- 
tive steps of the house, until the stars began to 
shine, and the cool night-breezes made them- 
selves felt, whereupon Antoine knocked the 
ashes from his pipe, arose, and after a cheery 


162 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


^^Bon nuit/^ took his way to the barn, where he 
found all three boys sleeping like tops, and in a 
very few minutes it would have been difficult to 
tell which was sleeping the soundest. 

And now, while they are asleep, let us consider 
what Susie did the next morning, after they had 
left the farm. For Susie certainly did it, though 
she would never admit it to a single soul. 

^^Toine knew his business,’’ Eddie said after- 
wards, ^^and everything was goin’ smooth as 
butter in a pan. Then up must get our Susie 
with her clack and spile it all! Fer as soon ez 
they went, off she goes meanderin’ over the hill 
to that good-fer-nothin’ Sam Hawkins’ place, 
and tell everything she thought she knew to Sam 
Hawkins’ wife, with old Sam a-settin’ there, 
takin’ it all in, and layin’ up schemes in his ugly 
head. Sam ’d been a little joyful the night be- 
fore. He ginerally wuz joyful the night before, 
but he had sum of his wits about him, for soon 
he gits up, grumblin’ like, sez somethin’ about 
goin’ ter see the Graver boys, an’ slouches off.” 
Then Eddie would go into a long oration upon 
the worthlessness of Sam Hawkins, and the 
shady reputations of the Graver boys. 


WHAT A HAV-MOW IS GOOD FOR 163 


Well, when Sam had heard how one of An- 
toine’s boys was John Van Lennep’s son, he got 
up and slouched away, as you have heard. He 
always slouched, and though the eyes under the 
dark, heavy brow were certain to look one over 
thoroughly, they never looked one squarely in 
the face. His reputation was not very savory, 
either. He had missed the prison doors a couple 
of times just by the skin of his teeth, and the 
neighbors declared that next time he would be 
locked up for sure, and devoutly hoped he would. 

To repeat, he slouched away, a little unsteadily, 
it is true, over a mile of very indifferent road, to 
the tumble-down shanty in which lived the Graver 
boys, his companions in most of his misdeeds, men 
who spent enough energy in living dishonestly to 
have made them very comfortable if it had been 
put into honest endeavor. They killed moose 
out of season for the sake of the heads, they made 
whisky in a secret place in the hills, and they were 
not above waylaying a man for his wallet, if they 
thought it was well filled, and were pretty sure the 
man would not be likely to fight too hard, for, 
like most men of their stamp, they were really 
cowardly enough. 


164 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


When he reached their shanty, Sam found them 
loafing about the door, for it was too bright and 
cheerful a day for them to busy themselves with 
any of their dubious occupations. They greeted 
Sam with a grin, for he was a kindred spirit, gave 
him a stubby stool for a seat, handed him a pouch 
of cheap tobacco, and told him to ^^make himself 
t^ hum.’^ 

For a while they sat quietly smoking, as though 
there was nothing in the world worth talking about, 
yet they well knew that Sam was not a man who 
would walk so far in the morning without a very 
good reason. 

Wall, what ^s doin’? asked one of the Graver 
boys at last — it was Jim, oldest and ugliest of the 
brothers. Sam thereupon drew his seat up a little 
closer, and the three of them put their heads to- 
gether. Sam was not very clear-headed as yet, 
but nevertheless he managed to make his meaning 
clear, upon which there was a raising of eyebrows 
and a shrugging of shoulders. 

You would have had to be very close to them 
in order to hear what followed, for habitual cau- 
tion made them speak very low, and about all 
one could have heard were the muttered remarks. 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 165 


^^rich old guy/’ ''pull his leg/’ and the like. Any 
passer by, seeing the trio, with their heads thus 
together, and noticing the appearance and counte- 
nances of the men, would have gone on a little 
faster, sure that there was trouble brewing for 
some one. 

Sam seemed to experience difficulty in trying 
to persuade Jim to do something. "Nothin’ 
doin’,” said the latter, raising his voice. "You 
don’t get this person up against a proposition like 
that there Scotty feller. ’Member what he did to 
Joe Parker? Right in the small of the back, an’ 
they planted him next day. Why, you all-fired 
idjits! jist look a-here — ” and he dropped his 
voice, continuing in an agitated way to describe 
what happened to the ill-fated Joe Parker, who 
seemed to have had the bad taste to have gotten 
in the way of om* peaceful and good-natured 
Antoine. 

The other brother. Reds, seemed more easily 
persuaded, and before long both he and Sam united 
in an attack upon the dubious Jim, who finally gave 
way, though not without many "Don’t blame 
mees,” and "Don’t say I didn’t warn yees,” and 
many similar expressions. Upon which surrender 


166 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


the heads went still closer together, for many de- 
tails were to be thought out. And so we will leave 
them at their pleasant occupation and reton to 
our party, which we left sleeping so comfortably in 
the warm hay-mow. 

In the middle of a simply terrific snore. Bill 
woke up to find the early sunlight streaming 
through the cracks and crannies of the barn, the 
level rays lighting up the dusky rafters above 
them. For a minute he lay still, listening to the 
chorus made by the other three. Then with real 
joy in his soul he remembered that always some 
one had awakened him, and that Jack had been 
by far the worst offender he had known. So he 
gave one leap, landed upon Jack’s peaceful form, 
and shook him with all his might. And Bill was 
getting stronger every day. 

‘^Hey, get — off! Thunder! Look here, what 
do you think you’re doin’?” spluttered Jack, 
while the noise of the fray awakened the others 
at once. 

‘‘Doing!” laughed Bill. “I ’m waking you up, 
you fat old sleepy-head! I ’ll show you. Get up! 
Get up!” and he worked Jack’s shoulders up and 
down until the latter was compelled to make a 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 167 

regular rough and tumble fight in order to free 
himself. It was some minutes before he could 
shake Bill off, and then it was only with an exer- 
tion that left them both panting with open mouths. 
Then came the usual morning performance, fol- 
lowed whenever possible. The three boys made 
a dash for the little lake, shedding clothes as they 
went, and Bill was not the last one in, either. 

For a while they splashed about, happy as ducks, 
until Jack, who had been watching BilFs swim- 
ming, said: 

^clare to goodness, Billy, if you donT swim 
just like a seasick cow! — if you can call it swim- 
ming at all, for I swear you go backward faster 
than you go forward.^’ 

A month before Bill would have sent such a 
critic about his business in short order, but now 
he merely grinned and said that he was a ^^dub,’' 
and knew it. ^'Give me a pointer or two, Jack,’^ 
said he, canT get the hang of it at all.^’ 

Then there was a great splashing time, as Jack 
showed the elemental forms of the simple overhand 
stroke, and then supported Bill in the water, as the 
latter endeavored to copy his teacher. It was 
surprising, too, how quickly he caught the move- 


168 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


ments. He learned more in a few minutes than 
the expert in a very expensive swimming academy 
at home had taught him in a month. Before they 
left the water Bill swam without Jack’s sup- 
porting arm, and did not make bad progress, 
either. 

When they finally reached the farmhouse, wet- 
haired and happy, they were met by a whole deluge 
of delicious scents that made them quicken their 
pace, and, sooner than it takes to tell it, they were 
seated before the biggest pile of flapjacks ” and 
sausage that you ever saw in your life — all aided 
and abetted by a large, fat syrup jug, filled with 
home-made maple syrup, the most delicious kind 
in the world! They ate and ate, while the inde- 
fatigable Susie made cake after cake, beaming 
broadly the while, and stopped only when it 
became a physical impossibility for them to eat 
one more. After such a meal exercise was out of 
the question, so they seated themselves on the 
steps for a half-hour, while Eddie told them pre- 
posterous bear stories, so seriously that they all 
but believed him — that is, with the exception of 
Raimon. As for Susie, after a hearty ^^Good 
luck” to all, she went stoutly back over the hill. 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 169 


and was soon lost to view. “Got a relation over 
there/^ explained Eddie, “and wants to clack a 
bit, I reckon.’^ We know the effect of that mo- 
mentous “clack! 

At last Antoine opened his map and showed the 
boys where he expected to go that day. Then- 
road now went a little to the northwest. 

“Mebbe we see wat-you-call Ossipee Lake dis 
evenin’. Ver’ fine leetle lake. Know a man who 
live there. All right, and so we go.” With many 
grunts he got to his feet, paid Eddie what to Bill 
seemed a ridiculously small sum, and started 
them off, with their packs on their backs, first 
around the lake of their morning’s swim, and 
then for a long jog through the rolling hills, alter- 
nating with forest and clearing. 

Though httle happened this day. Bill found 
himself walking along like a machine, and think- 
ing httle of it, shifting his burden from one shoul- 
der to another, as did the others, and taking 
secret pride in the fact that he was doing quite as 
well as Jack, and almost as well as Raimon. Dur- 
ing the morning Antoine told them many true 
adventures of the woods, even giving accounts of 
one or two feats accomplished by Bill’s own 


170 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


father, which, of course, interested Bill hugely, 
and gave him an entirely new respect and opinion 
for his parent. Yet no one so modest as Antoine, 
for he invariably put himself in the background, 
and, according to his accounts, his companions 
were the sole heroes of all the adventures, the 
excellent guide himself seeming to be little more 
than a privileged spectator. The boys knew 
better, however, and were able to '^read much 
between the lines.^’ 

So they marched steadily along, at midday 
eating a crude but quite satisfying meal from 
their packs, seating themselves near a little spring 
in one of the clearings that broke the continuity 
of the forest. And then they went on again, all, 
even Bill, taking a keen pleasure in the steady 
exercise, which is one of the best in the world. 
Bill, himself, never felt better in his life. There 
seemed to be a strength and elasticity in his 
legs that he had never known before. He filled 
his lungs deeply, when he breathed, threw his 
shoulders back under their burden, and thought 
scornfully of Jimmy Fairfax. 

Sure enough, at about five o^ clock, they caught 
glimpses of the expanse of Ossipee Lake not far 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 171 


ahead, and almost repeated their experience of 
the evening before, for, as Antoine had said, he 
knew a man thereabouts, and in another little 
white farmhouse they were welcomed by that 
man in person, not to speak of his family, which 
included two half -grown white-headed youths. 
It was not long before the boys once more found 
themselves comfortably at rest in another hay- 
mow, leaving Antoine to talk long with Paul 
Jonpierre, the farmer, attended by the wife and 
sons, for a visitor was a great rarity there, and 
had to be made the most of. 

Incidentally, Sam and the two Gravers had 
not been losing time. The former had gone off 
with the shrill protests of his wife in his ears, 
taking with him his well-worn and dirty gun, a 
half -side of bacon, and an old blanket. 

^^Goin’ noTh,^^ was all he would reply to his 
wife^s inquiry, and she had to be satisfied with that. 
To tell the truth, she was rather used to getting 
such replies, and had found, by long and bitter 
experience, that there was nothing for it but to 
take it philosophically, and wait until it pleased 
him to return. It was no unusual thing for Sam 
to go off on mysterious trips of a week or more, 


172 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


and she lived in expectation, those times, of hav- 
ing the pleasant news brought to her that he had 
been caught at some deviltry, and put safely be- 
hind the bars. 

Sam started away briskly enough, and was soon 
joined by his two boon companions, similarly pro- 
vided, and this charming trio then followed hard 
on the road taken by Antoine and the boys, mak- 
ing fairly good time of it. It was not difficult for 
them to follow our friends, for there was only 
one road in that direction, though it was with some 
satisfaction that they saw, here and there, signs, 
plainly visible to any experienced woodsman, of 
the preceding party. 

As they walked, for want of better amusement, 
Jim took pleasure in annoying and worrying his 
companions by continually talking of the deeds 
and adventures of Antoine, whom he seemed to 
hold in great respect, the kind of respect that 
even the fiercest jackal would have for a lion. 
Particularly he dwelt on the story of Joe Parker. 

swan, fellers,’^ said he, every time I think 
o^ poor ole Joe Parker I kinder wanter back outen 
this here business, and I reckon ye know me 
enuff to be sure I would n’t back out fer any aver- 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 173 

age man; but that there cussed Scotty, why, he 
take the three of us fer breakfast, wipe his mouth, 
an^ call fer another helpin’. I ’dare I don’t half 
like the idee of annoyin’ that there half-breed 
Frenchman. Got ter be sharp work, er Sam’s 
old woman ’s a widder. She could go an’ make 
friends with ol’ Missis Parker.” 

‘^Joe Parker must ’a’ been a fool,” said Sam, 
‘4f all a body hears ez true. But ye never can 
tell, ye can’t believe all ye hear. Pussonly I be- 
lieve Joe died o’ snake-bite, er sumpthin’ of that 
kind.” 

Jim gave a scornful sniffle. 

‘^Snake-bite — pooh!” said he. “I got that 
story straight from a cousin of a man wat wuz 
there. This is how it wuz. Ye see Scotty he ’d 
been away all winter in the woods, with one of 
them sporty rich folks, an’ I reckon ye know how 
much money Scotty gets from them folks every 
week. Well, he ’d jist been paid off, an’ had a 
wad-full, I reckon. He left his man at Stubb’s 
Corners, ye know that little one-horse railroad 
station, and he sets himself in the tavern, t’ wait 
fer the train goin’ t’ other way, night train, too. 
So he was a-settin’ in there when who should blow 


174 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


in but Joe Parker and the Hill Gang; ye know the 
crowd, I reckon, tough ez ye can get. they set 
around a while, Joe gettin^ drunker ^n’ drunker. 
Surprisin’ wat Joe could do that a-way, ye know, 
when he really set himself out to it. All the time ole 
Scotty keeps a-settin’ there, quiet as a ole puss, 
don’t drink nothin’, ’n’ don’t say nothing particu- 
lar. Quiet, retirin’ man, Scotty. Sure. After a 
while someone sez, ' Scotty,’ sez ’ee, ' made a 
good haul, did n’t ye — all winter’s job.’ ” 

‘^^Oh, purty good,’ sez Scotty, but he don’t 
enter no conversation about it. Then them blame 
toughs, an’ poor ole Joe war n’t no better ner them, 
they began ter whisper an’ hugger-mugger ter- 
gether about the pile Scotty must have on him. 
An’ Scotty ’s no fool, but he sits tight, an’ keeps 
on sayin’ nothin’. ' I bet he ’s got three hundred 
on him,’ whispers Joe t’ the gang, an’ they perks 
up their long ears. ‘ Let ’s git up a little shindy 
an’ jist accident ’ly knock Scotty on the head, an’ 
when he comes to again he ’ll be all right, but he 
won’t have no three hundred. Then we can all 
say ’s he wuz dead drunk an’ lost his cash gam- 
blin’.’ So the gang thinks the idee pretty good, 
an’, all bein’ a little the wuss fer rum, they soon 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 175 


kicked up such a shindy as ye never heard, went 
yelling and stumblin’ about, an’ then Joe brings 
up against Scotty, an’ tries ter fetch him one on 
the head with a stick. Then the fun began. Ole 
Scotty jist ducked that stick an’ got up. Fust he 
give Joe a twist an’ a kick in the back that sent 
him sprawlin’ ter the floor, where everybody 
walked over him, an’ then that there Frenchman 
jist woke up. He began knockin’ their heads 
tergether sumpthin’ awful. Then he ’d use a 
ten poun’ fist, an’ then a big boot. An’ I tell you 
they jist got up an’ got. Some went through the 
winders, glass an’ all, some got stuck in the door, 
fer all tryin’ ter git out at onest, an’ there they 
stuck till Scotty gave them a shove, and then they 
went out, I swan. An’ one tried ter climb the 
chimbly, an’ one tried ter hide behind the 
furniture, till Scotty gits him by the leg an’ 
chucks him out the door. Yes, reg’lar house- 
cleanin’. So when he gits them all out, he picks 
up the only chair that ’s not smashed, sets down 
on it, an’ cool ez a cowcumber, takes out a pipe 
an’ smokes till that blasted train comes, an’ 
nobody goes in ter worry him, either. Wall, 
when the boys ran out from him, they took Joe 


176 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


with them, an’ nobody quite knows jist what 
happened a’ter, only some of the boys arrived at 
old Missis Parker’s next day, an’ brought Joe with 
them, an’ he wuz dead, too, like a door-nail, so 
don’t talk ter me about any Scotty. If anything 
falls through, jist you keep your eyes peeled, 
Sammy Hawkins, fer if Scotty don’t fix yer, I 
will.” 

'^Gosh all spiders!” exclaimed Sam, somewhat 
agitated, ^^mebbee we jist might ez well go back, 
after all; we might make fools of ourselves. Jist 
the same, we ’ve got a gamblin’ chance, I 
think.” 

^^Sure, we’ve got a gamblin’ chance!” cried 
Reds, ^Hhis is the best idee ye ever had, Samuel, 
an’ we ’ll make a go of it too, see if we don’t. 
Now you Jim, shet up on that good-fer-nothin’ 
Scotty, I ’m tired bearin’ about him. I don’t 
worry about him, I can tell you. I ’d much liefer 
meet him than Susie Polk. Hear how she fixed 
the baar? I swan!” and Reds nearly doubled up. 

Well, they made right good time, so good, in 
fact, that they were within sight of Scotty and his 
boys just as they reached the farmhouse. The 
three men got as close as the trees would allow. 


WHAT A HAY-MOW IS GOOD FOR 177 


watching everything closely, and saw with satis- 
faction the three boys go to the barn. 

guess he ’s one of them,’’ said Jim, “an’ I 
s’pose the other two ’re Jonpierre’s boys. I reckon 
they ’ll leave the kid in the barn, an’ Scotty will 
smoke his pipe with the old man, talkin’ over old 
times.” 

“I kinder think yer off, Jim,” said Sam, “fer 
Scotty ’s takin’ three boys, his own an’ another, 
his cousin, I think, besides the young snob. Let ’s 
do some thinkin’.” 

So, as the shades of evening fell, the three con- 
spirators sat under the trees, with their heads 
together, while Scotty, as they had predicted, 
smoked his pipe with Jonpierre, and the three 
boys slept like logs in the comfortable hay. 


CHAPTER X 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 

Scotty and Farmer Jonpierre talked and smoked 
long that evening. Gossiping was the only recre- 
ation that the farmers had, and there were not 
many opportunities. So, of course, the whole 
story of Bill was gone through, to the gasps of 
astonishment of the whole family, boys and all. 
Then the news of the countryside was given to 
Scotty, and discussed in detail, after which Scotty 
bid them his “Bon nuit,’’ and went down to the 
barn to turn in with the boys. He found the 
bam very quiet. 

“Pore boys ver^ tired, I s^pose. Had some 
pretty good walk to-day,^' said he to himself. 
Then he stood before the hay -mow and listened. 
There was not a sound. Everything was still. 

Scotty made a hasty examination and found 
the barn empty — not a boy there, though he 
stumbled over their packs on the floor. 

“Ho,^^ thought he to himself, smiling grimly, 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 179 


“bad boys make trick on old Antoine. Shame 
He felt around in the hay and found nothing but 
blankets. 

“Ho, boys,^’ he called cheerily, “coom! Eet 
ees time to sleep, an^ not to play, hein? Queek, 
now!^^ There was no answer. 

“Raimon! Viens donc!^^ this time there was 
authority in his voice, and an authority that 
would not have been disobeyed had Raimon 
been there, but, as there was no reply, the guide 
went swiftly back to the farmhouse, being too 
wise to strike a match in a barn, and soon re- 
turned with a lantern and Jonpierre. The lan- 
tern lighted the place dimly, but plainly enough 
to show that there had been a struggle in the 
place, for a couple of the packs had been kicked 
open, and their contents strewed about. Hay 
from the mow had been thrown over onto the 
floor, and indeed there was more than enough 
evidence to show Antoine that the boys had not 
gone of their own free will. Then, as final proof, 
the lanterns showed prints of hobnailed boots on 
the soft earth of the entrance, and the two realized 
in a moment just what had happened. 

For a moment or two they stood gazing at each 


180 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


other, speechless, Jonpierre with sagging mouth, 
and Antoine with as firmly closed a jaw as you 
can imagine. 

‘'What is it, Antoine? cried Jonpierre, in 
French, “some kind of trick, don^t you think? 

“Trick? No!’^ rephed the guide in the same 
language, “those boys would nT play such a 
trick. Raimon would nT have the courage, and 
Jack ^s got too much sense. Some nasty busi- 
ness. Wait, attendez, I ^11 show them! Such 
pigs! who have done this!” 

“But why? WThat would anybody run off 
with your boys for? C^est ridicule.” 

“Ho, I can tell why; it ^s the rich man’s son 
they want.” 

“Heavens, yes! But why take all three?” 

“Stupid, wouldn’t the other boys give them 
away? But come, this is no time for chattering 
here like two fool parrots!” Then they set to 
work, Antoine with a grimness of expression and 
an activity that boded ill for anyone who would 
get in his way. They were at the farmhouse in a 
jiffy, where Antoine undid his pack a moment, 
stuffing his pockets with certain articles taken 
therefrom, then, shouldering his rifle, stood 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 181 

ready, and was soon joined by Jonpierre and his 
eldest son, both similarly equipped, and off they 
went taking the lantern with them. 

First they hurried to the barn, the entrance of 
which Antoine examined again with the lantern. 

^^Bah, only t^ree of dem!^’ he exclaimed, as he 
circled around like a giant firefly, '‘only t’ree. 
Wait a bit, we fix ^em!^’ Then off he went. 
"Come, vite!’' So they went. 

The other two followed Antoine in single file, 
as he led them, at a good pace, too, across the 
clearing behind the barn, and into the woods 
beyond, following there what seemed to be a 
rough trail, a flash of the lantern near the ground, 
every httle while, being suflSicient to show that 
they were going right. 

"Paul,^’ said Antoine to Jonpierre, after a few 
minutes’ walk, "suppose dese men dey look for 
us, hein? An’ tak a shot from behin’ some tree? 
Ver’ good, den mebbe we catch dem sooner. But 
jus’ the same, s’pose you keep your gun ready, 
what? ” 

"Oui! it is done,” replied the farmer, shifting 
his rifle around to the front. 

So the three brave fellows went on through the 


182 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


dark woods, quite careless of the fact that at least 
three desperate men were ahead of them, and in 
fact might be lying in ambush for them, so that 
any tree might conceal an enemy, who could see 
them well on account of the lantern that An- 
toine carried. But without the lanterns they 
could have done nothing, and, as it was, only the 
skill of the guide made it possible to follow the 
track, for often the ground was too hard to take 
much of an impression; yet Antoine continued 
unerringly on, with the accuracy and steadiness 
of a blood-hound on a fresh trail, going rapidly 
where the footprints were distinct, and almost 
as rapidly by pure woodsman’s instinct when it 
became invisible. He could ^^feel” which way 
they were going, and this feeling, as it were, en- 
abled him to do marvelously well. 

Every damp bit of ground assured him that he 
was making no mistake, for the footprints of the 
three men were plainly seen in such places, and 
so were the lighter prints of the boys’ moccasins, 
and you can be sure of the anxious thrill that 
went through Antoine’s heart whenever he no- 
ticed the print of a moccasin a little smaller than 
the others, for Raimon’s foot was small and deli- 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 183 


cately made. And no wonder that Antoine was 
anxious, for he realized that Raimon, as well as 
Jack, would be but handicaps for the despera- 
does, who, if circumstances might seem to require 
it, would make little of doing away with them 
there in the woods. So he rapidly pushed on, 
mingling, between his teeth, fervent prayers for 
the lads, and equally fervent curses for their 
captors. 

Suddenly his fear seemed to be realized. Far 
ahead of them they heard a rifle-shot, followed 
by a faint shrill cry, that made Antoine^s hair 
stand bolt upright, and set him to going ahead 
with tremendous bounds, causing the two follow- 
ing him to exert themselves to their utmost, 
willing as they now were to do their best. On 
they rushed through the trees, when the sound 
of a voice brought them to a sudden halt. 

'^Monp^re!^^ cried the voice. 

With a groan Antoine dashed in the direction 
of the voice and soon found little Raimon, white- 
faced, and leaning against a tree. His right hand 
was closed tightly about the upper part of his 
left arm, from which blood was evidently running. 

^^My little boy, my little boy!” sobbed the 


184 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


guide, ‘‘so they have hurt thine arm! Did 
they shoot thee any other place? Tell me, 
quick 

^'No, mon pere, I fell down then, and they 
thought they had killed me/’ 

Antoine muttered under his breath as he re- 
moved Raimon’s shirt and bared the arm, being 
relieved to find the wound not a serious one. 
With a piece of linen from one of his numerous 
pockets, he bound the arm firmly, replaced the 
shirt, then, taking the boy on his shoulder, and 
handing his rifle to Jonpierre, he was ready to 
advance again. 

^^They go to Black Mountain, they say,” re- 
marked Raimon from his perch, and lapsing into 
his English. ^^An’ they don’t know you come 
so queek behin’.” 

Black Mountain!” cried Antoine, stopping 
suddenly, just as he was about to go forward. 
^^But then we muss git there afore them. Fine 
place for to hide, dat Black Mountain! But I, 
Antoine, know more queek way dere dan this. 
All right, we git dere first. What for dey shoot 
my leetle boy? I fix dem! ” 

'^Oh, I try if I can git away,” said the plucky 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 185 


boy to the astonished three. ‘^They stop a min- 
ute to res’ an’ I ’tend to fix my moccasin, an’ so 
I pick up a beeg stone an’ drop it on ole Sam’s 
foot, for he have hoi’ of me. He let go an’ I run, 
while he jump an’ dance. Then that man with 
red hair he shoot at me, an’ I pertend I killed, an’ 
they all go fast as they kin, that ’s not so fast, 
for Sam he almos’ can’t walk, an’ stumble, an’ 
say many awful words.” 

^^Ho,” said Antoine, hugging his son to him, 
^'my boy Raimon some pretty good boy!” and 
he looked proudly at the other two, who agreed 
so heartily that Raimon blushed there in the 
dark. 

^'All right, so we go,” said Antoine, '^an’ we 
fin’ dat Black Mountain my way. You ’ll see.” 
This time he reassured himself by a glance at his 
compass, and then set off at an angle to the path 
they had been taking, for he seemed to carry a 
map of the whole country in his head, with the 
forests, hills, streams, and all. Nor did the fact 
that Raimon sat on his shoulder seem to make 
any difference to him, and Raimon, though not 
as large as either of the other boys, was hard as 
iron, and no light weight. 


186 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


They pushed on in silence for a while, finally 
coming to a little brook, that took its lonely way 
through the trees. 

^^Some little drink,^’ remarked Raimon, softly, 
‘^an’ I think I can walk.’’ 

Antoine gently put the boy down and gave him 
as much water as he wanted, and then they set 
off again, Raimon trotting sturdily enough be- 
hind his father, to the great admiration of Jon- 
pierre and his sixteen-year-old son, and, to tell 
the truth, of his father as well. 

I tell you it was no mean speed that these woods 
people made through the night. An average man 
would have sat down exhausted after an hour of 
it. But Antoine and his son were used to follow- 
ing a moose for hours at a time, and the other 
two were well accustomed to long continued 
exertion. So you must not think I am exagger- 
ating when I say that before daylight they had 
made the distance between Ossipee Lake and the 
grim, rocky outskirts of the bleak Black Moun- 
tain, though Raimon drooped a little, it is true, 
and gladly lay flat on the ground, wrapped in 
Jonpierre’s coat, when the guide declared they 
had gone far enough. 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 187 

When enough gray light came from the east, 
Antoine made up a rough breakfast, of which all 
ate heartily, Raimon seeming much strengthened 
by it, for he sat up and told all that had hap- 
pened. When they went into the barn, he told 
them, they were very tired and so lost no time in 
kicking off their shoes, wrapping themselves in 
their blankets, and making nests for themselves 
in the comfortable hay. Too weary to talk, they 
were soon asleep. ^Then the sound of some kind 
of disturbance awoke Raimon. There was a 
struggle going on in the hay -mow near him, and 
he sat up at once, to be confronted by the un- 
pleasant vision of an ugly man standing over 
him with an upraised club. The barn was dimly 
lighted by means of a stubby tallow candle, 
placed dangerously on the floor, and in this faint 
illumination he could see both Bill and Jack, who 
were standing near the candle, in the grip of the 
red-haired man already mentioned, who threat- 
ened them with a heavy revolver. The man who 
watched Raimon seemed very angry when he 
saw the boy was awake. 

^^Now we Ve got ter take this here one too!^^ he 
had exclaimed. 


188 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

him on the head/’ Reds had savagely 

replied. 

“No good, got ter take him along,” responded 
the first speaker, who was none other than Jim. 
So Raimon was made to hop out of his bed, and 
don his moccasins with the other two, while the 
men threatened to brain them all if they raised 
so much as a whisper. It seemed that Bill and 
Jack made a concerted break for liberty, and in 
the scuffle that followed, for they were grabbed 
instantly, the packs were kicked about. Evi- 
dently the fear of the ready clubs and the revolver 
had prevented the boys from shouting. 

“If I only knew which one of ye wuz the rich 
man’s kid,” Reds had angrily muttered, “I ’d 
brain the other fer sure!” But fortunately Reds 
did not know, and so in a minute they started 
off, each man holding the arm of a boy in a 
strong grip, every minute or two promising the 
direst of fates to the boy who should make the 
least disturbance, and in fact Bill did get one 
good whack with a stick for attempting to speak 
with his captor. And though the blow must have 
hurt, Raimon gave Bill the credit of taking it 
manfully. 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 189 

After a mile of walking through the woods, the 
men seemed to cease their excessive caution, and 
began to talk to each other, as well as to try 
to get out of the boys as to which one was 
the ''rich man’s kid,” and with poor success, 
for not a word would either Bill or Jack say 
about it. 

Then Bill had asked what they were taken for, 
to which Reds had replied that when they reached 
Black Mountain they might tell them that it was 
for the pleasure of their company. 

It was only after they had gone quite a way, 
and at a very good pace, that they had stopped a 
minute to take breath and to get their bearings, 
for the men were evidently not so well acquainted 
with that territory as was Antoine, and it was at 
this time that the plucky little Raimon dropped 
the heavy stone on the estimable Sam’s foot, and 
made a run for it, and just escaped being killed 
by a shot from Red’s rifle. Indeed, as he lay 
quiet on the ground, he heard that worthy say 
to the others, "There’s one bit o’ lumber 
done fer, anyway, an’ now we ’d better git 
out.” 

Then Raimon, knowing his father, expected 


190 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


that he would be along before a great while, and 
so did not exhaust himself with running, but en- 
deavored, by gripping the wounded arm with all 
his might, to prevent as much bleeding as possible, 
and had succeeded very well. 

Having heard Raimon’s story, and briefly ap- 
proving of it, as far as Raimon’s actions were 
concerned, though with muttered promises as to 
Reds, Antoine told them that it was about time 
to be getting ready, so he selected a goodly tree 
that stood on a little hill, and carefully climbed 
high into the branches. He made himself com- 
fortable there in his look-out, where he could get 
a long view of the old trail that led from the for- 
ests to the pass that one must cross over, in order 
to get into the wilderness of rocks and crevices 
that composed the larger part of the well-named 
Black’ Mountain. 

They had quite a long wait of it, for not only 
had they made a good short-cut to the place, but 
had gone at a better pace than the others, despite 
the fact that an injured boy accompanied them. 
In fact it was after ten o^clock when Antoine spied 
them from afar, and slipped rapidly down the 
tree. Then, seated on a little knoll from which 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 191 


he could still get a good view, he outlined his 
plan of campaign. It was just as well planned 
as the one made by the three conspirators the 
previous evening. 

Finally all could see the little party, far away, 
coming directly towards the pass, nor was it diffi- 
cult to judge that they were weary enough, for 
their pace was not a rapid one, and the two boys, 
easily distinguished, were evidently on their last 
legs. Then Antoine and his companions went 
down from their knoll and made ready. 

It was true that Bill and Jack were dead weary. 
The long walk the day before had tired them to 
begin with, and the long night ^s journey through 
the forest had been almost too much. Jack, of 
course, sturdy as he was, stood it better than 
Bill, and in fact, at this last stage of their trip, 
the latter had a hand on Jack^s shoulder, other- 
wise he could not have gotten along, despite the 
threats made now and then by their captors. 

As they drew near the pass. Bill, though doing 
his best, stumbled through fatigue, and received 
a prompt rap with a stick from behind, from the 
ill-tempered Reds. 


192 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


'^Git on!^^ cried he. ye think this here ^s a 
funeral? I ^11 teach ye!’^ 

Dirty trick/^ Jack cried, indignantly, hit 
a poor kid that 's doing his best, an^ dead tired, 
too.’^ 

Reds rephed with a shrewd rap on Jack’s head 
that made the latter wince. '‘Now you keep your 
mouth shut, you young whelp, or I ’ll jist natu- 
rally knock your head in,” said that worthy gen- 
tleman. Jack half snarled at him, furious as he 
was, but perforce kept on his way, helping Bill all 
he could, while the latter, gritting his teeth, kept 
doggedly on. 

"I ’d give a hundred, I would, ter know which 
wuz which!” cried Reds to the other two; "’pon 
my soul, I ’m beginnin’ ter think that there lazy 
one ’s the kid — it don’t seem he ’s used to real 
hard work.” 

You can wager that this made Bill more deter- 
mined than ever to hold his own, and he actually 
withdrew his hand from Jack’s shoulder, and 
walked alone until they got into the narrow pass 
itself, where high rocky walls guarded either side 
of the way, that ran with many sharp angles and 
turns across a flank of the mountain. Just as they 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 193 


were making a particularly sharp turn, poor Bill 
stumbled again, and would certainly have fallen, 
had not Jack quickly grasped his arm and so sup- 
ported him. Reds was furious, and despite the 
restraining exclamations of the other men, stepped 
forward and distributed several blows between 
the boys, which made them step ahead once 
more, the men close behind them, and then, 
turning the corner, all five stopped as though 
petrified. 

Then it was that Bill let himself fall flat upon 
the ground, to sob there brokenly, undisturbed, 
and even Jack let his knees sink under him, so that 
he found himself beside Bill, looking ahead with 
wide eyes. But if Jack^s eyes were wide, they were 
nothing to the eyes of the two Graver boys, and 
of Mr. Samuel Hawkins, for as they turned the 
corner they beheld, seated on either side, a very 
interesting group indeed. For instance, there was 
a great white-haired boy of about sixteen seated 
easily on a rock, with a shiny rifle across his knees, 
and there, on the other side, was a powerful looking 
farmer, with an equally shiny rifle across his knees, 
and last, but not least, to the unspeakable horror 
of the three desperadoes, beside the farmer, smil- 


194 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


ing a grim, grim smile, was the figure of Antoine, 
who was also carelessly seated on a rock, with his 
rifle across his knees, not to speak of a revolver in 
his belt. And not the least of the horror of it all 
was occasioned by the sight of brown little Raimon, 
perched high on a side of the pass, calmly grinning 
from ear to ear. 

To say that the hearts of the three men seemed 
like lead would be to say nothing, so utterly horri- 
fied and dumbfounded were they, and they stood 
there, quite powerless to move, while Bill sobbed 
on the ground where Jack was actually seated, 
the latter staring as astonished as the others, you 
may be sure. It was Reds that finally stirred this 
happy group into sudden activity. With an oath 
he turned and made a dash for it, instantly fol- 
lowed by the others, who all dropped their weap- 
ons as they turned. 

^‘Don^ shoot cried Antoine to his comrades. 
^^Jus^ watch!’’ And he bounded after them, 
dropping his rifle also as he leaped. 

Sam’s foot was still painful, evidently, for he 
could not make much speed, so that Antoine 
reached him in a second, and with a blow between 
the shoulders, sent him flat on the ground, where 



“ Don’ shoot!” cried Antoine to his comrades. “Jus’ watch!” 

Page 194. 







ift* 


i t. 





' ... 






' 




W 

* 



WHEREI^^ SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 195 

he remained quiet enough. Jim was not a bad 
runner, but he was tired, and in a minute Antoine 
reached him, and served him as he had Sam. A 
heavy blow between the shoulders, and Jim pitched 
forward on the rough path and landed flat. He 
was about to arise, however, but a hundred and 
fifty pound youth suddenly sat upon his back, so 
Jim remained there for a while. 

Meanwhile Reds, though running hke a deer, 
was clearly unable to shake off Antoine, who was 
catching up on him at every bound. He was 
almost upon him when Reds suddenly drew his 
revolver, half-turned, and fired, at which the 
spectators yelled in alarm. Antoine remained 
untouched, and, remembering that the man he 
was pursuing had shot at his son, and had cruelly 
struck the other boys before his eyes, he almost 
lost his mind from pure rage, and, running up 
behind, served Reds as he had served the others, 
only so terrific was the blow he gave that Reds went 
forward upon his face as though shot from a gun, 
and fell with a thud upon the rock-strewn path, 
and lay there, the sense knocked out of him, his 
face cut in many places. 

At this happy sight the spectators set up a 


196 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


united cheer, even Bill joining in faintly, for he 
was now sitting up, trying to see through his 
swollen eyes. And their cries brought the enraged 
Antoine to himself, or it might have been the end of 
Reds, for the guide already had his hand on his 
revolver when he heard the cheer, and so, with an 
effort, he regained his accustomed self-control, 
satisfying himself by giving Reds a sharp poke in 
the side with his foot, at which the semi-conscious 
man gave a smothered groan. 

Then Antoine bent down, and with a bit of 
thong, bound Reds^ hands behind him and left 
him there, returning to the others, to tie them in 
similar fashion. Then, it now being midday, and 
his usual poise being fully regained, he said to his 
friends: 

‘^Ho, we have fonnee times, not? Now suppose 
dese here boys dey sleep some. Bill an’ Jack. Jus’ 
while I make dinner, hein? So we will eat, and we 
will rest, an’ we will tak’ dese men to Fremont, 
about ten mile, and our fren’ the constable he tak’ 
dem. I t’ink dis one ver’ good plan, w’at you 
t’ink?” 

They all agreed, though they did not ask the 
opinions of the men lying along the path, and soon 


WHEREIN SCOTTY GETS EXCITED 197 


Antoine and Jonpierre’s son were gathering fire- 
wood, and searching for water, taking their time 
in preparing a meal, while all three boys slept flat 
on the ground, and never did boys deserve sleep 
more. 



PART THIRD 


ON THE LAKE 


CHAPTER XI 

WESTWAKD ho! 

Every one knows how a boy will almost die if he 
cannot ask questions when his curiosity is aroused, 
so that it may seem strange that Bill and Jack, as 
soon as Antoine’s performance was over, went 
directly to sleep where they were, without so much 
as a word to any one, and Raimon joined them 
readily enough. It was nearly one in the after- 
noon, too, before Antoine had the heart to disturb 
them, but their sleep of two hours seemed to have 
refreshed them greatly, for as they fell upon the 
crude meal prepared for them, they all three began 
to talk at once, so that the rocks actually echoed 
with their chatter. 

Bill and Jack immediately opened fire upon 
Raimon. 

^^My land o’ Goshen! you sufferin’ young sin- 
ner!” Jack exclaimed, as soon as he pulled his 
wits together. ‘'When I saw you settin’ there on 
the rock I thought I would die, cross my heart I 


202 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


did. And here Bill an’ me have been sheddin’ 
tears over you, we have, for that red-headed rascal 
said he ’d killed you, an’ we saw you drop kerflop 
ourselves. Gee, we could hardly go on after that, 
only they whacked us on the head with sticks. But, 
my goodness, we had a gone feelin’ ; I had n’t cried 
for years, neither. An’ here you pop up cheerful 
as ever, an’ almost as good-lookin’. I believe 
you ’re a spook yet, I ’dare I do.” 

^‘Say,” cried Bill, ^Vhat did you do? Dodge 
the bullet? My goodness, how I hated that man! 
About every five minutes I ’d wish he ’d fall down 
and break his neck. Did n’t he touch you? What ’s 
the matter with your left arm?” 

Raimon smiled charmingly. ^^He jus’ touch me 
there,” he replied, ^^jus’ touch. But I pertend 
dead to git away. Jus’ knew my father would 
come ’long soon.” 

'^You ’re the clever kid!” exclaimed Jack; '4f 
it were n’t for that arm of yours I ’d come over 
an’ regularly hug you, ’dare to goodness I would. 
Did he hurt you much? Wish I could fix him.’’ 
And he looked threateningly to where Antoine had 
placed the three prisoners in a row against the 
rocks. 


WESTWARD HO! 


203 


^‘No, he not hurt much/^ replied Raimon; be- 
side, my father he fix him some already/’ And 
indeed the hanging head of Reds, as well as his 
scarred and blood-stained face, looked as though 
he had been “fixed ” to some extent, at least. 

Yes, there they sat in a dejected row, now and 
then looking at each other disconsolately, and 
occasionally making muttered remarks not in- 
tended for their captors’ ears. 

“What did I tell ye?” Jim had snarled under 
his breath. “I said as we’d be fools to run 
aginst that bounding Frenchman. Now look at 
us! Goin’ ter be jugged this t me fer sure. All 
joui doin’s, Sam Hawkins, so wait till I get out; 
I ’ll fix you first, so I will!” 

“Oh, do shut up!” politely growled Reds. 
“You’ve got off easy. Jist look a-here at me! 
My whole face ’s scraped off, an’ then I shot at 
that dirty little kid, so I ’ll get double what you ’ll 
get. Hang you, Sam! I wish you ’d never been 
born!” 

As for Sam, he said never a word, for the reason 
that his feelings were quite beyond words as he 
realized that his wife’s predictions had at last 
come true; he had been caught at some dirty 


204 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


devilment, and was going behind the bars, and 
would probably remain there for a considerable 
spell. 

The boys chattered like magpies through their 
meal, that is. Jack and Bill did most of the chat- 
tering, for Raimon was a quiet little person, who 
thought much and said httle, but his dark eyes 
sparkled, nevertheless, and no one enjoyed the 
situation more than he, despite the burning in his 
left arm. 

After the meal, Antoine thought that it would 
be a good time to give Raimon’s injury a first- 
class cleaning, and so heated some clear water in 
a little tin canister, and brought antiseptic dress- 
ings from a diminutive emergency case, such as all 
careful woodsmen should carry. Again Raimon^s 
shirt was removed, and once more the other boys 
had an opportunity to witness the younger one’s 
courage, for the removing of the old bandage, the 
cleansing of the wound, wh ch was already be- 
ginning to heal and the re-dressing of it was no 
light matter, but Raimon said never a word, 
though his face paled a little, and the perspiration 
stood out on his forehead. 

Nervy little kid,” exclaimed Jack, when it 


WESTWARD HO! 


205 


was over, maybe I don’t like you like a brother,” 
and he brought cool water and bathed Raimon’s 
face with it himself, to the mingled embarrassment 
and pleasure of the latter, who seemed tremen- 
dously pleased at the other boys’ opinions of him. 

Antoine wouldn’t do it himself, but he got 
good-natmed Jonpierre to give Reds’ cut face an 
antiseptic wash, which improved his appearance 
much, and actually surprised him into an expres- 
sion of gratitude, for the unattended scratches 
and cuts were very painful. Then, while Antoine 
and the farmer guarded, the hands of the three 
men were unbound, and they were given some- 
thing to eat and as much water as they wanted, 
and then were re-bound, while the party made 
preparations, which were not many, for leaving 
the pass, as it was high time to be setting out for 
Fremont if they wished to get there before dark. 
In a few minutes they started, Antoine taking the 
lead, as the very best trails were known to him, and 
then came the three prisoners, their hands behind 
them, then the farmer and his son, on guard, and 
then the three boys, the two older ones the proud 
bearers of the prisoners’ firearms, while Raimon 
trotted happily enough beside them, and you can 


206 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

imagine that by the time they arrived at the little 
straggling village of Fremont, there was little 
about their adventure that had not been discussed. 
As to Fremont itself, well, it tinned out en masse,’’ 
as the strange procession went through its single 
real street, and you cannot imagine the tremen- 
dously important bearing of the constable, as he 
guided the travelers to the lock-up, and there 
turned the key upon our friend Sam and the two 
Graver boys. 

The boys now felt that they were prominent pub- 
lic characters, for until they turned into their 
beds, in the village inn, they were the center of a 
gaping throng of admiring countrymen, who made 
Jonpierre tell the whole story at least a score of 
times. 

It would be tedious to relate all that went on at 
Fremont during the next few days, but it so hap- 
pened that court was being held there at that 
time, and things moved expeditiously, so that it 
was not long before the three kidnappers were 
securely placed behind the strong walls and bars 
of the state prison, and there they will remain a 
long while. 

After the trial, our party of six made its way 


WESTWARD HO! 


207 


back to Jonpierre^s home, to regain their baggage, 
and take up their tramp where it had been inter- 
rupted, and I might say that Antoine did not neg- 
lect to repay the farmer generously for the time 
and trouble he had so willingly given them. But 
when they were ready to go, they did not find it 
an easy matter, for everyone in the^vicinity had to 
see the boys and hear the story. Even Eddie 
Polk came over, on horseback. 

^^Wall, I ’ll be bung-swizzled!” declared Eddie, 
vociferously, I never heerd the beat in all my born 
days. Susie done it that time, didn’t she! I 
allerz told her that clack would make a mess some 
time. Jist wait till I git t’ hum, I ’ll rub it in I 
So old Sam Hawkins is got where the dogs won’t 
bite him, hey? Wall, that ’ll be good news fer 
some folks, I reckon, an’ I guess as his wife kin 
rest easy a bit. She ’s in luck an’ don’t know it. 
But ding-bust it, what a joke on Susie!” and off 
he went, whacking his horse with his heels, in the 
biggest kind of a hurry to get home and ^^rub 
it in.” 

Finally, with good wishes from all, they started 
off. Bill and Jack carrying Raimon’s baggage be- 
tween them, and, before long, they were making 


208 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

their way westward, through forest and clearing, 
just as though nothing had happened, with Lake 
Champlain a hundred miles away. 

And now, for some days, nothing occurred suffi- 
ciently interesting to be written about, only it 
may be noted that, as the time went by, BilFs 
shoulders became straighter and straighter, that 
his muscles became harder and considerably 
larger, his chest began to get round and full, and he 
held his head up like a man, and no longer seemed 
afraid to look people in the face when he spoke to 
them. 

As for Raimon, his arm healed rapidly, and it 
was not long before he was carrying his burden 
again, as cheerfully as ever. 

If they had gone in a straight line, they would 
not have been long in reaching Champlain, but 
Ajitoine took them on unexpected zigzags, to 
show them choice bits of scenery, or to take them 
through particularly good scrambles, until Bill 
became so well trained that he could climb right 
up a very respectable hill, baggage and all, and not 
stop for breath once. 

Five weeks from the day Bill left home found 
them about thirty miles from the lake, according 


WESTWARD HO! 


209 


to the map. The boys had come to know that 
map very well, for every day Antoine had them 
examine it and go over it, in order that they might 
become accustomed to its use, and so be able to 
pick routes for themselves, which he occasionally 
allowed them to do. Nor is this always an easy 
matter, for one must consider the grades, for the 
more hills there are to climb, then of course the 
shorter is the day^s journey, and then one must 
see that there is a farmhouse at the end of the 
tramp for each day, for sometimes there are un- 
expected rains, and always a hay-mow is a very 
comfortable place. Also, if you can run across a 
lake, or a fair-sized stream, it makes matters better, 
for a swim or bath is almost a necessity for every 
day; and then, before getting in the water, some 
clothes can be washed and hung in the sun to 
dry, and by the time you have had a good splash- 
ing, and have become sun-dried yourself, you 
find your clothes dry also, and the more com- 
fortable because more clean. 

For a few days Antoine had been leaving his 
pack of linen-backed maps in Jack^s possession, 
making him and Bill responsible for their route, 
and steadily he made their packs heavier and 


210 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

more complete, for he said it was not right for him 
to carry almost as much as all three together. 

Then he accustomed them to sleeping on the 
ground, on a bed of evergreen branches, and 
little by little, taught them as much wood-craft 
as they could absorb at a time, and found them 
ready pupils indeed. 

One night they had turned in, as I have said, 
about thirty miles from Lake Champlain. All 
that day Antoine had lectmed to willing ears 
concerning the fine art of tramping and camping, 
and, after the boys were asleep, he sat by the 
embers of the fire a long time, meditatively smok- 
ing his pipe, and smiling to himself in a satisfied 
manner. There was no doubt in his honest mind 
but that he had been doing all that could have 
been expected. 

As the early sun was beginning to shine from 
the east, next morning. Bill awoke, and for a 
while, lay quietly upon his back, looking, half in 
wonder, up into the clear blue above him. Then 
he wondered why Antoine had not called them. 
It was a little late for Antoine, so he turned over 
to look at that gentleman, then rubbed his eyes 
and looked again, doubting his senses, as well he 


WESTWARD HO! 


211 


might, for no sign was there of either Antoine or 
Raimon; only Jack lay still sleeping beside him, 
snoring audibly. 

To say that Bill was absolutely astonished 
would be to say Uttle. Then he turned over and 
gave Jack a poke that made that young gentle- 
man sit up with an angry snort. 

‘^My stars! What do you think this is?’^ 
cried he, rubbing his ribs. 

Blest if I know what it is,’’ replied Bill, ‘‘I 
thought maybe you could tell me. Where ’s 
Antoine, and Raimon, hey? ” 

At this Jack sat up and looked around, then 
he stood up and looked around again. Then his 
jaw dropped. 

Blest if I don’t think they’ve vamoosed,” 
declared he, in an injured tone. 

And indeed there seemed every evidence of it, 
for not a sign of the two could they find. They 
had evidently gone, bag and baggage, only there 
was a bit of paper fluttering from a stick stuck 
upright in the ground, and also there was a little 
package tied to the same stick. 

Bill jumped up and took the paper in his hand, 
and then scratched his head, as he puzzled over 


212 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


the curious note he found there. This was what 
he read: 

We say good-by. i think you can go alon. Go to 
Crown Point an tak train ther. Fin monie by this stick, i 
thank you boyes for that you r good. So you mus b in New 
York in 5 week. 

Adieu, mes cheres gargons! 

Antoine Scott. 

Hope i see you soon, for i lyk you. 

Raimon Scott. 

land o^ Goshen!” cried Jack, '^if they 
have nT up an^ gone an^ went an’ done an’ left 
us! Now what do you think of that! Talk about 
nerve. How does that crazy cousin of mine ex- 
pect us to meander all about this here country 
alone? The bears ’ll eat us for sure, ’dare t’ 
goodness they will! An’ — why we just simply 
can’t get along without Raimon, you ’ve no idee 
how I like that little beggar. Look what he says, 
too, ^Hope i see you soon, for i lyk you!’ My 
land, he can’t spell a little bit, but he ’s one of the 
finest kids I know!” 

‘^That’s what he is!” replied Bill, '^but what 
struck them, do you think? It ’s the funniest 
thing I ever heard of.” 

‘^Oh, I know what it is, well enough, it ’s what 


WESTWARD HO! 


213 


they call 'puttin’ us on our own ’sponsibility.’ 
Well, no use sittin’ around scratchin’ our heads. 
We might jist as well be amblin’ along, as old 
Sambo used to sing, on the ship. Let ’s have 
some grub — but hold on, we ’ve forgotten all 
about that package. Better not, Antoine says 
there ’s money in it.” So Bill opened it, and found 
therein about fifty dollars in large and small 
bills, as well as change, and also, to his pleased 
surprise, a little revolver and a box of cartridges. 
To the revolver he found this note attached — 
"Good thing to hav, bad thing to show.” 

"My, I wonder who this is for,” said Bill, finger- 
ing it lovingly. 

"You, of course,” replied Jack, "this here ’s 
your party, now, I reckon; you ’re boss, but I 
don’t care. I guess we ’ll get along first class — 
if you don’t boss too much.” 

Bill protested himself black in the face that 
he didn’t want to be "boss,” but Jack would 
hear of nothing else. "Your dad ’s paying for the 
picnic,” Jack insisted, "so there’s no two ways 
about it. So let ’s get busy and have some grub, 
then we can look over those blessed old maps 
and see where we are going.” 


214 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


With accustomed rapidity they made a pretty 
good breakfast of rations from their packs. You 
might not have cared for it, if it were to be placed 
before you at table, but if you had been some 
weeks tramping through woods and over moun- 
tains, you would have thought it good enough, 
and, furthermore, would have been glad to get it. 

Breakfast being eaten, the maps were brought 
out by Jack, and the two heads bent over them. 
Antoine had marked with pencil their roads up 
to that time, as they knew, and there was a little 
star at their present location, then, faintly, he 
had marked possible routes to the west, and 
clearly the best one led to a place called Milton, 
on the shore of Lake Champlain, and at about 
the widest point of that body of water. From 
Milton Antoine had drawn a line across the lake 
to Douglas, and from there south, through the 
eastern Adirondacks, to Crown Point. He had 
made out another route, it is true, that took them 
along the east shore of the lake, past Burlington, 
and so south again to Crown Point, but the first 
way seemed by far the more attractive to the 
boys. They liked the idea of crossing those six- 
teen miles of fresh water, and, an3rway, the Adi- 


WESTWARD HO! 


215 


rondacks looked like good climbing. So they 
decided to go to Milton, thirty miles away, and 
to make a two days^ trip of it, taking things 
leisurely. And it was well they did, for they ran 
right into some climbing among the Green Moun- 
tains that lay between them and the lake, that 
would have made better time a matter of great 
doubt. 

Now they saw why Antoine had made them 
used to following a map, though now that the 
responsibility was entirely upon their own shoul- 
ders, the map was drawn out every few minutes, 
so to speak, to insme their following the right 
path. This they did at every cross-trail, and so 
careful were they, that they lost their way but 
once, and then there followed a great agitation 
until they found it again. But it was with much 
satisfaction, that afternoon, that they saw the 
farmhouse they had picked out loom in sight, 
and so brown were they, and so unspeakably 
shabby and ragged, that the farmer thought them 
to be only ordinary country boys, and so gave 
them permission to sleep in the hay, a permission 
more readily given when they offered to pay for a 
supper. 


216 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


BilFs observations of Antoine^s dealings with 
farmers made him acquainted with values, so 
when the farmer suspiciously asked how much 
he would pay, he said he would give twenty -five 
cents if he gave them both a supper and break- 
fast. As this was all that could be expected of 
such shabby boys, the farmer agreed, gave them 
a large, substantial, though very plain meal, and 
then they spent an uneventful night in the hay- 
mow. 

Next morning the map was brought out again, 
but they now realized that there would be little 
need for it, as the road went straight to Milton, 
and so clearly that they could n^t miss it if they 
tried. So, after breakfasting and paying the 
farmer, they started on their way, and, making 
very good time, arrived at Milton just a httle 
after noon, and the first thing they did was to go 
into a little eating-house, to the vast surprise of 
the proprietor, no doubt, and to eat to the best 
of their capacity of civilized grub,^’ something 
they had not seen since leaving Fremont. 

^^Billy,^^ said Jack, when they left the eating- 
house, don^t want to look like suggestin’ 
things to the big boss, but I think we could buy 


WESTWARD HO! 


217 


some decent duds and not go far wrong. For ^pon 
my sainted Sam our things are so full of holes 
that we might just as well be naked. Good thing 
there ’s no skeeters in these parts. And here are 
our toes tryin^ to get out of our moccasins! Let 
get extravagant and buy some pants, anyway. 

For the first time in a month Bill looked at his 
clothes. He made an observation and acknowl- 
edged that Jack was right. ^^Oh me, oh my!^' 
laughed he, do wish my folks could see me now! 
D’ you know, Jackie, I used to be one of those 
things you call a 'dude’?^’ 

^^Sure I know it. Didn^t I see you the day 
you arrived on the Belgrade? There you stood, 
fixed up to beat the band. You said ^Gee, what 
a smell! ^ Remember? I noticed ^baccy on your 
breath that afternoon, too.’’ 

Guess you did. Wasn’t I a mess! Wonder 
the old captain did n’t hand me one on the ear 
when I sassed him. Would have done me good, I 
dare say.” 

'^Well, I guess he didn’t think you were 
quite responsible, were n’t used to havin’ to do 
things.” 

Guess you ’re right.” And Bill scratched his 


218 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


head. ‘'All right/’ said he at last, “let ’s get 
some duds before we ’re arrested.” 

They found a little shop which looked hopeful, 
and after some dickering, came forth with a 
bundle each, containing a blue flannel shirt, 
khaki trousers, and strong high moccasins. Then 
they went down to the lake shore, where they 
gaped in amazement, for they did not expect to 
find such a magnificent body of water, for it 
looked almost like a long, narrow ribbon from the 
mountains. It seemed more like an ocean than 
like a fresh-water lake. There was land about 
four miles out, and this their map showed them to 
be a great island more than three miles wide. 
And beyond the island there were four miles of 
water, and then a smaller island, after which 
another mile of water brought them to the New 
York shore. From the south end of the island 
before them extended a long, white streak that 
reached to the Vermont shore, and this they 
found to be a railroad, built on trestlework, 
nearly three miles long. 

After gazing delightedly at the scene for a 
while, they hunted up a sheltered spot, removed 
their ragged clothes, and indulged in one of the 


WESTWARD HO! 


219 


finest swims they had had for a long time, and 
then, putting on their new ^^duds,^’ and feeling 
very grand in them, they sat down to plan for 
their immediate future. Of course they were 
going to cross the lake. Douglas, too, was nearly 
opposite them, though a little to the south, to be 
sure. They could go to Burlington, and take a 
steamer across — the map showed the steamer- 
routes plainly, but that would have been a dis- 
grace to any respectable and self-respecting 
tramper. Unfortunately they could not swim it, 
either. Sixteen miles is a rather longish swim, 
even with islands to rest upon now and then. 
Then they did not possess enough money to pur- 
chase a boat in which they could row themselves 
over, which was a pity, and they didnT know 
much about making one. 

So they sat on the rocks by the shore, thinking 
up all kinds of schemes, when suddenly their so- 
lution seemed to present itself. Around a little 
promontory came a boy in a boat. At least, by 
way of compliment to the boy, we will call it a 
boat, for he had doubtless made it himself. At 
first glance they could not tell whether he was 
going backward or forward, because one end of 


220 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


the boat looked precisely like the other. This 
vessel was about twelve feet long, and made with 
square ends. It was built on the graceful model 
of the scow, and, as a scow, was evidently a great 
success, for it did move through the water, and 
seemed to be staying on top of it, though the boy 
appeared to have his doubts, for he had left his 
clothes on the shore. He was seated on a board 
nailed across the center, by way of a rowing seat, 
and was rowing the boat by means of a pair of 
oars wonderful to behold. The hearts of Bill 
and Jack warmed to that boy and his boat, and 
it seemed to both of them at once, if they crossed 
the lake in that contrivance, they would have 
done all that could possibly be required by the 
most exacting. They held a hurried conference, 
upon which Bill shouted: 

'^Hey there, boy! Come here!’’ and beckoned 
with his hand, when the boy turned a sur- 
prised face in their direction. He was seemingly 
doubtful of their intentions, and finally shook 
his head. Bill saw his difficulty and shouted 
again. 

'^Say, come here, please! How much do you 
want for your boat?” 


WESTWARD HO! 


221 


At this the boy seemed to take more interest, 
and rowed close to the shore. 

^‘How much do you want for your boat?’' Bill 
repeated; ^Ve want one about that size to go 
across in.” 

The boy grinned. He was a pleasant-looking 
boy, about their own age, too. 

^^Go on!” said he, don’t reckon you’d dast 
t’ row across this here water in this little scow. 
I reckon you don’t know how the wind blows 
here.” 

The lake looked smooth as a mirror, and, truth 
to tell, the boys were peacefully ignorant of what 
furious storms swept Champlain, now and then, 
and often most unexpectedly. 

“Sure we dast,” replied Jack; “we ain’t afraid 
of any old lake. Sell us that there boat, an’ you ’ll 
see us putting across for all we ’re worth. What 
do you want for her? We ’re no millionaires.” 

The boy saw they were really serious, and so 
drove the boat upon the sand where Bill and Jack 
now stood, and again Bill had a chance to admire 
a boy who was evidently stronger and browner 
than himself. 

“Well,” said the boy, “I don’t know jist what 


222 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


ter ask fer her. I made her myself, an' y' know a 
feller likes anything he makes that a-way. Jist 
the same, if you think it 's worth — three dollars, 
I guess I 'd let you have her, fer then I could buy 
some decent boards and make a new one. This 
here ain't so fancy, but she took a lot of work. 
She goes all right, but not very fast, and don't 
leak — much. Yes, I 'd sell her fer three." 

Bill and Jack discussed the matter in whispers. 
They had not a great deal of money, and had to 
economize, and yet this boy was so much like 
themselves, that they felt like giving him what 
he asked. Surely it was not a great sum, when 
one considered how long the boy must have 
worked over it. 

‘^All right," said Bill at last, ^'we '11 take her. 
We 're going to the post-office to write a couple 
of notes, and then we '11 come right back here 
and get her, and, you see, you can get your 
clothes by that time. We '11 be back in about 
half an hour." 

The boy seemed pleased enough, and promised 
to be on hand. Then our boys went to the little 
post-office, where Bill sent a postal card to his 
parents, and Jack one to his uncle. You may be 


WESTWARD HO! 


223 


interested to know what Bill wrote. You know 
he realized what a different boy he was, and yet 
he wanted to surprise his father and mother, so he 
wrote as follows: 

Dear folks: — Arrived at Milton all right. I am well 
and hope you are. Maybe you think I like living like a 
tramp. Will be home before much longer. 

Your son, 

Bill. 

I might say that this note did not please BilFs 
father as much as the previous one had done. 
He wrinkled up his brows and felt disgusted. As 
for Mrs. Van Lennep, when she saw it, she ex- 
claimed, ^^The idea! of course he don’t like living 
like a tramp ! He ’s been brought up like a gentle- 
man. I do wonder at you, John, for letting him 
go alone with all kinds of low people. Why, they 
might injure him for life!” 

To this, of course, Mr. Van Lennep made no 
answer, but he felt that his idea of a gentleman 
was rather different from his wife’s, and also 
he had his own conception of what was really 
meant by the words 'Tow people.” 

So you see Bill succeeded in his plan for con- 
cealing from his parents the change that had taken 
place in him. 


224 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


The notes written, they returned to the shore 
and found the boy was there with his boat, ac- 
cording to promise. The money changed hands, 
to the delight of the boat-builder, who tried to 
set them properly on their way. 

“If you’re going across,” said he, “you had 
better go through the draw-bridge you see on 
that long railroad trestle there. Or you can go 
through a place near the island, if you want. 
Mebbe you ’d better spend your night on the 
island, fer it ’s nearly four now, and this here 
boat ’s no racer. I Ve put a big can in the bot- 
tom fer you, ter bail with if you have ter. You 
never can tell what ’s goin’ ter happen on this 
here lake.” 

Bill thanked the boy and decided to go through 
the latter place mentioned, and probably spend 
the night on the south shore of the island. Then 
with the good wishes of the boy, and the cheers 
of a good-natured crowd of other boys, who had 
assembled to see the show, they started off. Jack 
at the oars, and pulled steadily from the shore, 
going smoothly, if slowly, over the placid waters 
of the great lake. 


CHAPTER XII 


A LITTLE BOATING 

Certain it is, the boat was not a racer. Jack 
was a husky lad, but they were going little more 
than a mile an hour. In fact. Jack was afraid to 
put all his strength to the oars, for they were very 
crude, home-made affairs, and seemed to be 
fashioned of bean-poles with pieces of board 
nailed to one end. Nevertheless, they actually 
did go, and that was all that was really neces- 
sary, for time was a matter of little moment, and 
the fun of going across in such a craft made up 
for a multitude of objections. Little did they 
know that even owners of sea-worthy motor-boats 
were sometimes dubious about crossing that 
broad expanse of water, and I have seen myself 
a great sixty -foot steam yacht lashed fast to its 
dock for a week, because its owner thought it 
rather unwise to take her beyond the protection 
of the breakwater that shielded her from the 


waves. 


226 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


But this day, fortune smiled upon them. They 
went diagonally across, slipped through a pas- 
sage under the railroad, near the shore of the 
island, and then kept along the land until, in the 
gathering darkness, they could just distinguish a 
good beach, where they landed, drew high their 
boat, ate a cold meal, wrapped themselves in 
their blankets, and went sound asleep under the 
stars. It was fortunate for them that daylight 
lingers so long in that latitude, in that season of 
the year, for they had not reached the railroad 
until eight o^clock, and had not turned in till 
nine — a terribly late hour for them. 

When they awoke, next morning, they found it 
was yet clear and still. Their beach was at the 
foot of a rather steep ascent of land, and it seemed 
that the south shore of this island was more or 
less high for its whole length. On the beach it- 
self miniature waves were flashing and rippling 
invitingly, so you can believe it was not long be- 
fore the boys were plunging into the clear, cool 
water, and Bill no longer floundered about, for 
he was developing into a very good swinuner 
indeed. 

After the plunge, they donned their clothes. 


A LITTLE BOATING 


227 


climbed the cliff behind them, and reaching 
level ground, saw, as they hoped they would, a 
farmhouse not far away, where, to the great sur- 
prise of the farm-folk they bargained for and 
obtained a very good breakfast, and then returned 
to their boat, followed by the farmer himself, who 
doubtfully shook his head when he saw their 
queer-looking craft. 

swan, boys,’^ said he, would n^t try t’ 
cross in sich a little boat. S’pose a big wind comes, 
hey? There ^s one a-comin^, I think. Why, ye ^11 
git swamped, sure ez shootin\ Now ye might 
take the steamboat, or ye might take a train. I 
swan I would nT go that-a-way, it ^s sure temptin^ 
Providence.’^ 

But the boys were not to be discouraged, feel- 
ing very confident in themselves, and soon started 
away, and so well did they use their time, that by 
eleven o’clock they were at the southwest extremity 
of the great island, and thqre ran their boat ashore, 
to have a meal before attempting the six miles 
that lay between them and the New York shore 
opposite, for they had decided to pass south of 
the little island that they saw four miles away, and 
a little to the north. 


228 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


This time there was no farmhouse to aid them, 
so they made up a meal from their packs, and 
were rather glad to rest their blistered hands, 
too, for they had done little to harden their palms 
in their travels, and rowing was a new experience 
for Bill, who suffered most in consequence. Any- 
way, it was not a light thing they had attempted, 
to row so slow and clumsy a boat for such a dis- 
tance and with such oars! However, they were 
not boys to back out from anything once started, 
and, before long, were headed due west, which 
course they kept uneventfully for about an hour 
taking tiu’ns at the oars. And then something 
happened. 

All this time the lake had been as smooth as one 
could wish, but suddenly the wind began to blow 
steadily, but not strongly, from the southeast, 
and at once the lake was covered with little spark- 
ling ripples, which was a sight very charming to 
behold. 

^^My, but this is great cried Bill, ‘^prettiest 
thing I ever saw! Wish it came from the east, 
but I guess it helps us some anyway, donT you 
think? 

Guess it does,’’ replied Jack, and just then the 


A LITTLE BOATING 


229 


wind came a little stronger, and then a little 
stronger again. At once the ripples became larger. 
They danced and splashed, and knocked lightly 
against the side and stern of their boat, as though 
helping them along. And this the boys seemed to 
think very charming, too, although it became more 
difficult to keep their boat headed due west, when 
the wind seemed bent on their going northwest. 
Still they managed quite well for a while, but 
found, to their alarm, that the wind was coming 
stronger and stronger every minute. The ripples 
became little waves that were strong enough to 
sway the boat, and even rock it quite decidedly, 
now and then. 

^^DonT think much of this, after all,^’ said Jack, 
who was then rowing. '^If this gets any worse, 
we ^11 have to give up going west, and just run 
before the wind. Maybe that old farmer was nT 
so far off. There! Look at that now!^^ he ex- 
claimed, as a wave ran slantingly alongside, and 
gently spilled about a quart of water into the boat. 
'^Much more of that an’ we ’ll have to get out an’ 
walk!” 

There was no doubt about it. The wind came 
heavier and heavier, and the sky hazier and hazier, 


230 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

and finally so much water began to splash over the 
side that they quickly gave up their comse in alarm, 
and were glad to have the boat go with the wind, 
being content only to keep her stern to the waves, 
which were already running higher than you would 
believe, unless you have been there yourself. Well, 
they were high, and the white-caps were nothing 
to sneer at, and yet the boys managed fairly well, 
going with the seas, for each successive wave 
merely lifted the stern, and seemed to sweep them 
easily forward, pass under them, and away, 
leaving the boat to slow down a minute until the 
next wave caught them up and pushed them ahead 
again. Now and then, to be sure, a little water 
would come in over the stern, but this was rapidly 
removed by means of the can, so fortunately left 
by the boy over at Milton. Yet the boys realized 
that their position was far from being a safe one, 
for should they by any chance happen to turn 
beam-on to the waves, they would be swamped 
in a second. 

‘‘I don’t know just where we’re going,” said 
Jack, turning his head a second, to look ahead, ^^but 
it is a sure thing that we are makin’ right good 
time. So I guess we ’ll get across this confounded 


A LITTLE BOATING 


231 


lake, if this tub only holds together. Who ever 
think that such an innocent-lookin^ pond would 
kick up such an all-fired ocean as this! Cracky, 
but that was a whopper!^’ and a big wave gave 
them a mighty shove, passed swirling under them, 
and let them slide down its steep back as it passed. 

‘^It looks to me,’’ cried Bill, who bailed and kept 
look-out, ^Hhat we ’re going straight into that little 
island we saw on the map. Valcour is its name, I 
think. Well, hope we don’t try to knock down 
some cliff a hundred feet high, that ’s all.” 

Rapidly as they were moving, they soon saw 
that they were indeed approaching Valcour Island, 
and, as they came near, they could see that Bill 
had not mentioned cliffs in vain, for the whole 
south shore of this land was an array of gray- 
colored cliffs, at the foot of which the water foamed 
and spouted. It was morally certain that to land 
there might have fatal consequences, and, as far 
as they could see, the east shore did not appear 
much more attractive, though it certainly was 
lower. 

Seems to me. Jack,” said Bill, ‘‘that we might 
try to edge a little to the north, for that east coast 
is lower, and we might strike some little beach 


232 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


there. We ’re going right on the southeast corner 
of the island now. Queer looking place, almost 
square, far as I can judge.” 

Accordingly Jack tried to turn the boat a little 
to the north, watching the following waves care- 
fully, so that if any particularly large one came, 
he could turn back again and run with it. In this 
way they really did manage to head a little from the 
threatening corner of the island, and though they 
could see that the shore was rocky quite a way 
along the east shore, there seemed to be a flat spot, 
perhaps half a mile from the corner. So they 
headed for the flat spot as best they could, and 
dangerous work they found it, for more than one 
large wave caught them slanting, before Jack 
could turn the boat, and threw gallons of water 
into the little hull, and made Bill work that 
bailing-can till his arms ached. 

The storm sent them forward swiftly, and you 
can imagine their delight, as they neared the 
shore, when they saw that the flat place was evi- 
dently an indentation, a little protected bay, per- 
haps, within which they could make land safely. 
With more hopeful heart. Jack bent all his ener- 
gies to forcing the clumsy boat into this haven, 


A LITTLE BOATING 


233 


and it was high time, too, for the rickety structure 
was beginning to give way from the pounding it 
was getting, so that almost as much water came in 
through leaks as came over the sides, keeping Bill 
working with might and main, though his breath 
came in gasps and the perspiration stood on his 
forehead. But the end came just as they reached 
the entrance of the haven. Jack gave a sudden 
violent pull on one oar to swing the boat ahead of 
a great sea he saw advancing, and the crude im- 
plement broke short, with the result that the boat 
turned half around, and caught the wave almost 
broadside. There was a violent lurch that nearly 
capsized them, and the boat filled immediately 
with water, and began to go down. 

Quick!’’ shouted Jack. “Jump over and hang 
on!” jumping over himself, and being straight- 
way followed by Bill. The boat, lightened of their 
weight, floated at the surface, and they found it 
was also capable of floating them, when they held 
on at the sides. 

“Hang on. Bill!” Jack cried, “hang tight, and 
the waves will push us in to the still water.” So 
they hung on with might and main, though each 
tumbling wave seemed to do its best to drag them 


234 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


from their hold, sometimes covering them com- 
pletely. But they held with the strength of des- 
peration, and, before long, found that Jack had 
judged correctly. The waves gradually swept them 
into the little round bay, where the water became 
more and more smooth, and soon, with a shout of 
positive delight. Bill found that he could touch 
bottom. 

After that the rest was easy. They slowly 
pushed the heavy, water-filled boat through shal- 
low water, up to the sandy beach, tilted the water 
from it, and wearily dragged it high enough to be 
safe, and saw, to their satisfaction, that their 
packs, though wet enough in all conscience, were 
still in the bottom of the boat. 

It was now about three in the afternoon, and 
that side of the island was getting cool, aided by 
the strong wind that was sweeping across the 
foaming water, and, tired as they were, the boys 
knew there was no time for inactivity. So while 
Bill dragged the packs onto the fiat surface of a 
great, low rock, and undid them. Jack made a huge 
pile of dry driftwood, collected along the shore, 
and, with the aid of some dead leaves, and a match 
from a water-proof box, soon had a warm fire crack- 


A LITTLE BOATING 


235 


ling and flaming. They then placed several 
forked boughs upright near the fire, supporting 
them with rocks, or by forcing them into crevices, 
and from fork to fork laid straight cedar branches, 
and upon this frame-work hung their blankets 
before the fire, and as many of their articles as 
there was room for, and ended by sitting as near 
to the warmth as they could, for they had found 
their ducking a most chilling experience. Finally 
they removed all their clothes, hanging them with 
the blankets, and toasted themselves thoroughly 
by getting as near the fire as was possible without 
getting actually roasted. Well, it takes quite a 
while to dry wet flannel, or blankets, even before 
a very warm fire, so that it was about an hour 
before they found their clothes dry, and glad they 
were to resume them, you may readily believe, 
though their moccasins were still hopelessly 
damp. 

‘‘DonT suppose there’s any use looking for a 
farmhouse,” said Bill, “so we might just as well 
decide to spend the night here. And I guess this 
place is as good as any. Pretty place, too, come 
to think of it.” 

And indeed it was, and is, as the writer well 


236 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


knows. They had come into a most charming 
little circular bay, two long arms of cedar-covered 
rocks extending around, in either direction, as 
though to protect it from the fury of the lake. 
And the lake itself was beautiful, with its flashing 
surf, with waves that ran far more rapidly than 
salt-water ones possibly could, and hit with a force 
that sent a fountain of sparkling drops in showers 
high into the air. And then the air was heavy 
with cedar and balsam, most pleasant of all wood- 
smells, so that in spite of their mishaps and narrow 
escape, the boys became more and more pleased 
with the place, and decided that things had not 
turned out so badly after all, and, besides, now that 
it was over, they began to look upon their adven- 
ture in the water as a desirable addition to 
their stock of summer experiences, to be re- 
tailed to astonished ears when they once got 
home. 

To make a long story short, they did camp 
there for the night, after making a satisfactory 
supper of odds and ends from their packs, odds 
and ends not easily damaged by water, and capped 
the climax with scrambled eggs, cooked in a dimin- 
utive frying-pan, and taken from a water-tight 


A LITTLE BOATING 


237 


tin of the golden powder with which Antoine had 
astonished Bill so long before. 

They made a bed of short cedar branches, on a 
level bit of smooth grass they found, and wrapped 
in their dry and warm blankets, slept till late 
next morning, for their excitement and exercise 
had left them almost exhausted. 

They awoke next morning to find a clear sky 
overhead, and a bright sunlight shining upon them. 
Their exertions of the previous afternoon had 
made them very weary, so that they had slept later 
than usual. For a while they lay quietly upon 
their backs, discussing their last adventures. They 
felt themselves forced to come to the conclusion 
that perhaps they had been very foolhardy, and 
had had a most narrow escape, but, just the same, 
they were a little pleased with their experience. 
And, in fact, boys who had nearly gone to the bot- 
tom of a furious ocean in a wrecked schooner could 
not be expected to be terribly alarmed over a storm 
on a lake but sixteen miles wide, and so plenti- 
fully provided with islands. 

^^Well, might just as well get up,^’ said Bill at 
last, with a sigh, ^^and I don't feel much like a 
swim, either, but here goes for it. " So he got up. 


238 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


and leisurely took off his clothes, his example un- 
willingly followed by Jack, who took revenge, 
however, by giving Bill an open-handed whack 
across the shoulders that could be heard many 
yards. At once there was a wild rough and tumble, 
and not the first one they had enjoyed, for Bill 
was anxious to try out his ever increasing strength 
on Jack, and the latter found it harder and harder 
to put Bill on his back. 

They tumbled about lively enough, first one up, 
and then the other, slippery as eels, and more than 
once perilously near rolling from the steep bank 
onto the beach. Finally, after great exertion. 
Jack managed to get a half -Nelson on his oppo- 
nent, and the match ended up in the usual manner, 
with Bill flat as one could wish. 

For a few minutes both gasped like porpoises to 
regain their wind, and then arose to rush into the 
water, but, instead of doing so, they stopped and 
stared, as well they might, for not fifty feet away 
were two other boys, also standing and staring, 
evidently in great surprise. 

Indeed each group had good reason to open 
their eyes. The two strange boys, one of whom 
was about fourteen, tall and light-haired, and the 


A LITTLE BOATING 


239 


other smaller and dark-haired, wore costumes 
sufficiently odd to begin with. They had short 
white running-pants, sleeveless jerseys, and low 
moccasins — a must unusual rig to run across in 
the woods. But as our boys had no costume 
whatever, perhaps the surprise of the strange boys 
was the more warranted. 

Jack thought that something should be done 
for the sake of the proprieties, and so he broke 
the silence. ^^Good morning,^^ said he, ^‘nice 
day after the storm.’’ 

'^Sure,” said the light-haired boy. ‘^But, say! 
you don’t call that a storm, do you? You ought 
to see it when the south wind blows.” 

Well, all I know is that there was storm enough 
for us,” replied Jack. ‘^Came near sending us to 
the bottom, too.” 

'^What were you out in — a launch?” asked 
the boy. 

'^Gee, no! that’s the tub we came in,” and 
Jack pointed to the luckless scow. 

Great Wux!” exclaimed the boy. '^Well, I ’ll 
be scobbled! You were n’t out in that?” 

‘^Certainly we were out in that,” replied Jack, 
^^and came across from Vermont in it, too.” 


240 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


From Vermont ! The boy stared, and seemed 
to be struggling for an expression that would ex- 
press his absolute astonishment. Great ash- 
cans! I ’ll be swally-wobbled!’^ 

‘^Sure we came over from Vermont,” said 
Bill, grinning, ‘^and now we ’re going to take a 
swim.” Upon which he and Jack ran into the 
water, and swam their best to impress their 
visitors. 

The strangers stood on the beach, and seemed 
at a loss for words. 

‘^Well, what do you think of that. Cuteness?” 
said the light-haired one at last. I bet they ’re 
faking. Why, we could n’t even take our big boat 
out yesterday, and they had to go for the mail in 
the launch. Great ding-bats!” and he walked 
about the remains of the scow and scratched the 
back of his head. 

When the boys came dripping from the water, 
and sat in the sun to dry off, they began talking 
to the strangers again. 

'^What do you think of our yacht?” asked Bill, 
with a grin. ‘‘Some classy boat, hey?” 

“You could n’t get me in it,” answered the light- 
haired boy, who seemed most willing to do the 


A LITTLE BOATING 


241 


talking. rather be excused, would n^t you, 

Cuteness?’’ 

^^You bet,” replied Cuteness, whose real name, 
by the way, was ^Thil.” 

^^No more for us, either,” said Bill. '^We ’ve 
a mile of water yet to cross, but we ’re not going 
to use Fido any more.” 

Guess we ’ll have to swim,” said Jack, '^unless 
there ’s a good-natured farmer hereabouts who 
will take us over.” 

Maybe they could go in one of our boats,” 
said Phil. 

^^Sure thing,” replied the other, ^^sure they 
could.” 

“Well, if you’ve got boats, I guess that’s 
fixed,” said Jack, who, with Bill, in the meantime 
had gotten his clothes on. “And now comes the 
grub question. Shake out your pile, Billy, and 
let ’s see what we ’ve got left.” 

The boys began going through their packs, 
but the results were not encouraging. Bill stared 
wistfully at a bit of bacon and a half-can of evapo- 
rated egg. “Guess we’ll have short rations,” 
said he, “unless there ’s a farmhouse near.” 

“Holychowf!” said the tall boy, whose name. 


242 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


incidentally, was Court. that all you Ve 

got? Guess you ’d better come with us and get 
something decent. Come on, it ’s only a mile.^’ 
Thanks, we’ll come,” said Bill, gratefully, 
“this stuff would n’t make any impression on the 
empty place in me. I could eat a pickled alligator, 
claws, tail, and all.” That ’s what Bill said, but 
both he and Jack thought to themselves that never 
in their lives had they heard such strange words 
as Court used. At any rate. Court and Phil 
seemed like good enough boys, so they got their 
baggage together in their usual neat packs, gave 
a parting look at the scow, and told their new 
companions that they were ready. 

“Good-by, Fido,” called Bill, after their forlorn 
craft. “Fido fidelis; she did the best she could.” 

Then they followed the two boys who led them 
through a winding path, which took them, through 
thick tangles and open meadows, straight across 
the island. To while away the time. Jack related 
their adventures of the day before, and was re- 
warded by Court with an assortment of the queer- 
est words that any one ever ran across. Then Bill 
thought he might just as well ask a few questions. 

“Do you live here on this island?” asked he. 


A LITTLE BOATING 


243 


^^Nix, sir!’^ laughed Court. '^We ’re just camp- 
ing here for the summer. There ^s about eight of 
us fellows, and two men keeping an eye on us. 
We Ve been here six weeks. Having a swell time, 
too.'^ 

'‘What are you livin^ in,’’ asked Jack, ‘^farm- 
house? I ’ve heard of fellows going from Boston 
to camp in the woods, and livin’ in farmhouses or 
bungalows, and callin’ that campin’.” 

"Farmhouse nothin’,” said Court. "We’ve 
got three tents, and a couple of boats, and a launch. 
She ’s named the Susie, The Big Chief, he ’s 
named her after his grandmother, he says. His 
grandmother says that she always must be a-doin’ 
something. An’ the engine in the launch is always 
a-doin’ something.” 

In the meantime they had been walking at a 
good pace, and finally began to catch glimpses of 
water through the trees, and then our boys knew 
that they were near their walk’s end. 

"We ’re almost there, now,” said Court. "By 
wux, I ’m glad we went to the east side this morn- 
ing, are n’t you. Cuteness? ” 

"Sure,” said Phil, with a grin, "and won’t the 
crowd get a surprise!” 


244 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


Suddenly Bill felt a sudden chill of embarrass- 
ment. When you remember how he must have 
feared a crowd of boys when at school, you can 
easily imagine why. He had always been the butt 
for jokes, and not very pleasant ones, either. And 
here he was going to meet with another crowd of 
boys, strange ones, too. But then he remembered, 
with a thrill of pride, that the two new boys had 
treated him just the same as Jack, and did n’t seem 
to see anything strange about him, and then 
delight began to fill his soul with the feeling that 
perhaps, after all, he had finally become like 
other boys! The thought was such a pleasant 
one that he became anxious for the camp to ap- 
pear, and indeed he had hardly thought of it, 
when they came suddenly to the shore, and there, 
right across a narrow bay, they saw the white of 
a large tent, about which two or three boys were 
playing, and beyond it, in the trees, another, 
and still another, further away. Court and Phil 
gave a couple of wild shouts, and then in a minute 
you can believe that there was a talking time of it. 
In fact, the whole camp turned out, as the boys 
came in sight, and most embarrassing it was for 
Bill and Jack to stand there in the midst of a 


A LITTLE BOATING 


245 


curious circle, while Court gave a vivid account of 
their shipwreck. But when Court said that the 
two had had no breakfast, there was a surprised 
and immediate activity. Bill and Jack were 
escorted to the largest tent, where sat a man in a 
home-made rocking-chair made of old boards. 
Court again put the case briefly, upon which that 
man bestirred himself, and from the way he ordered 
the boys around it was easy to see who was running 
that camp. Boys were sent to the farmhouse, a 
quarter of a mile away, for bread, butter, and 
milk; others were instructed to make a fire in a 
neighboring rock-built fireplace; and then the 
man himself went shoulders deep into a chest, and 
began bringing out tins and packages, and indeed 
it was not long before Bill and Jack were eating as 
though they had not had a bite for a month of 
Sundays. 

When the worst was over, and the boys got time 
to breathe, the Chief thought it was time to ask 
questions. ^^Do you mind telling me where you 
came from and where you expect to go? ’’ asked he. 

^^Not at all, sir,’’ replied Jack, who then gave a 
brief outline of all their adventures up to that 
time. ^'The next thing,” continued Jack, “is to 


246 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


get to the New York shore over yonder, and then 
strike south, headin^ for Crown Point. The map 
shows good goin’ that way.^^ 

“ It ^s good going all right, said the Chief. I Ve 
tramped that road myself. Then where do you 
go?" 

'^Why, then we just naturally take a train for 
Albany, I guess, if we have any cash left by that 
time, and if we have nT, I guess we ’ll keep right 
on walkin’. I ’ll be walkin’ in my sleep for the next 
ten years, I ’ll bet a hat. We ’ve got the habit.’’ 

The Chief chuckled. ‘^Got the habit myself, 
boys, and I ’m proud of it!’’ said he. ^^But why 
not stay with us a day or two and ^fit up’ again, 
seeing that you lost your provisions in the storm? 
Now, I ’m going up to Plattsburgh in my launch 
in a little while, and you may just as well come 
along and buy what you need, and then, if you 
have to go, we can put you on the shore to-morrow 
morning.’’ 

Bill and Jack looked dubiously at each other 
for a moment, though Bill was inwardly much 
pleased that they were liked and were invited to 
stay. “I don’t know,’’ said Bill at last, don’t 
like troubling you.’’ 


A LITTLE BOATING 


247 


Rats ! said the Chief, with emphasis, trouble 
nothing! We ’ll consider it settled then, so now 
I ’ll go and get the launch.” 

Susie? inquired Jack, with a grin. 

Yes, Susan herself, and don’t you believe what 
those bad boys say about my boat.” Then he 
called to a boy who had been watching from a 
distance. '^Hey, there, Swatts, get out a couple 
of suit-cases, will you? And get ready to go with 
us to town, if you want to go.” 

^^Sure thing!” cried Swatts, ready in a 
minute.” And he stirred around at a great rate 
while the Chief disappeared in the direction of a 
beach, some little distance away, upon which his 
launch tender was drawn. 


CHAPTER XIII 


MORE BOATING — “SUSIE PERFORMS FOR THE 
COMPANY 

In about a quarter of an hour the shrill shriek of a 
claxon horn, and the rhythmic chugging of an 
engine told them that Susie was on the way. 

^^Here she comes,’’ said Swatts, who, I might 
say, was a strong, good-natured looking boy of 
about fifteen. ^^Let ’s go down to the pier.” 

Each of the three tents had a pier, made by its 
inmates. “We’ve got the best, of course,” said 
Swatts, as they went out on it, just as Susie came 
around a corner, the Chief sitting beside the httle 
brass side-wheel, and looking very grand. In a 
minute Susie had been run close to the pier, the 
three boys had leaped aboard, the bow had been 
headed north, and off they went, at about nine 
miles an hour, a pretty good speed for the little 
twenty-footer. It was the first launch ride for 
Bill and^Jack, and they could hardly keep their 
eyes from the engine, which seemed to be man- 


MORE BOATING — PERFORMS 249 


aged so simply, and to do its work so quietly and 
well. They were given other ideas before a great 
while, but I will not spoil the story by saying 
anything about it now. 

The trip to Plattsburgh, eight miles away, was 
uneventful enough, though the boys were more 
than pleased because the lake seemed good- 
humored again, only the smoothest kind of rollers 
disturbing the mirror-like surface. 

Who ^d think that this was a regular ocean only 
a few hours ago!’^ exclaimed Bill to Swatts. 

^^It may be a regular ocean again in half an 
hour, if it gets it into its head to be so,’^ replied 
Swatts, grinning. And I may say that while Jack 
had a pretty expansive grin himself, he was not 
quite the equal, in this respect, to Raimon, but 
Raimon’s grin, at its widest, wasnT a circum- 
stance to that of Swatts, even when the latter 
did nT half try. Sure to blow up again before 
we get back,’^ said he, ^^and then we J1 have some 
fun.^^ He grinned again at the thought of the fun. 

Guess it would be good sport, in a slick 
little boat like this,’^ said Jack. 

^^Fun, all right, if the blessed engine donT 
stop,^^ replied Swatts, actually grinning a third 


250 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


time. Rather a pleasant looking boy, this, for a 
smile goes a long way in this world, and then his 
nose was tilted just a trifle, his hair stuck straight 
out in all directions, besides which he was as brown 
as a berry, almost as brown as Raimon. 

The Chief seemed to have little time for talking. 
It gradually dawned upon Bill and Jack that he 
was watching over that engine with the most ten- 
der solicitude, now and then feeling the bearings, 
now and then observing the oil-cups, and now and 
then experimenting with the feed. And then, 
every five minutes or so, he would do a little ener- 
getic pumping, which sent a couple of quarts of 
water overboard each time. 

What’s the trouble?” asked Bill, ^^got a 
leak?” 

Leaks a little through her stuffing-box, I 
think,” replied the Chief in a matter-of-fact man- 
ner, as though all launches were supposed to leak 
copiously through their stuffing-boxes. However, 
without incident of note, they reached the fair- 
sized town of Plattsburgh, tied up at a wharf, and 
leaving the good-natured Swatts to watch the 
boat, a duty in which Jack insisted on taking 
part, the Chief and Bill went up into the town to 


MORE BOATING — ‘'SUSIE PERFORMS 251 

make their purchases, and you may, or may not, 
be surprised to know that the first thing that Bill 
did was to go into a drug store and purchase an ice- 
cream soda! Their few necessities having been 
bought, they returned to the launch, finding that 
Jack and Swatts had struck up quite a friendship; 
Jack had started to talk about guns, upon which 
Swatts, who was perfectly gun-mad, took to him 
like a brother, and on the return of the other two, 
they were found deep in a debate as to whether 
it were better to take a carbine or an ordinary 
rifle on a long hunting tramp; the question being 
decided in favor of neither. 

The packages being put into the boat, and the 
two watchers having been treated to some espe- 
cially good things brought for their benefit, they 
cast off, and the Chief started the engine, which 
went like a charm until it took them outside 
Plattsburgh harbor, when, with a faint ^^chowf!^’ 
it stopped — dead. 

^‘Thunder I said the Big Chief, 'Hhere goes 
Susie. Came up so well, too. I wonder what ^s 
ailing her now?^^ So he shut off the gasoline, 
opened a little valve at the side of the cylinder, 
and gave the fly-wheel a sharp turn. There came 


252 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


a couple of sharp barks from that valve, and a 
very bad smell, which made Bill choke. Then the 
wheel was cranked energetically a few times, upon 
which Susie seemed to take interest in her job, and 
gave a few ^^chuggs’’ on her own account, upon 
which the Chief hastily closed the valve, turned 
on the feed, and away they went again. They 
almost rammed a wharf, however, for all this time 
the Big Chief had been down on his knees before 
the engine, as though worshipping it, and the 
boat had drifted in rather far. 

They seemed to be going beautifully, but even 
now Susie did not seem to be pleased. For about 
twenty strokes the engine would go smooth as a 
sewing machine, and then suddenly give two or 
three smart raps, as though displeased at some- 
thing. Each time she rapped the Chief’s expres- 
sion of anxiety became almost pathetic, and the 
way he coaxed Susie^ by means of lavish oil and 
careful manipulation of the feed was delightful to 
behold. 

They went a half mile this way, when there came, 
all at once, a succession of such sharp raps that 
the engine was stopped in a jiffy, and at such times 
the Chief thanked his stars that it could be stopped. 


MORE BOATING^'' SUSIE” PERFORMS 253 

“I know what the matter!^’ cried he, ^Hhe 
base has too much oil in it. I ^11 get it out right 
away.^’ 

So he bent over that blessed engine again, and 
opened a little place in the base of it. Then he 
gave the fly-wheel a good turn. His reward was 
a stream of jet black oil, that came like a foun- 
tain from the opening he had made. 

There, now,’^ said the Chief, as he wiped the 
oil from his eyes with a bit of waste handed him 
by the ready Swatts, thought that was the 
trouble.^’ Then he replaced the cap over the open- 
ing and started up the machine, which seemed to 
go nicely enough, upon which the Chief arose with 
a sigh and sat on the seat by the engine, only to 
grab the pump, and work it with all his might. 

Here,’^ said Bill, ^Tet me have that pump. I ^d 
like to do something.^’ So Bill was given the pump, 
and worked it off and on most of the way home, 
though they did not get there right away. 

But still Susie would not be pleased. She 
seemed to be going steadily enough, but now and 
then there came, lightly and gently, a delicate 
little knock, to show that she was still there, and 
did not mean to be imposed upon by anybody. 


254 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


As a last resort the throttle was turned half down, 
and now she went smoothly enough, though slowly 
enough, too. 

^^She ^s showing off before company,’^ said the 
Chief, she always does. But I ^d rather go slowly 
than not go at all ; besides, we have n^t much over 
four miles yet to go.^’ 

True enough, there were not many miles yet to 
go, but Swatts looked to the south and shook his 
head. There was a haze there, that looked like the 
old haze of yesterday, which, when the Chief saw, 
made him shake his head, and open the throttle 
a little, upon which Susie gave such an indignant 
knock that he turned it down promptly again, and 
said something in bad German. 

‘‘What ^s the matter, more wind?^’ asked Bill 
of Swatts. 

“Looks like it. Guess we ’ll have a storm,” he 
said to the Chief, “don’t you think so? Hum?” 

“Would n’t be surprised. Just our luck. Might 
just as well get out the spray-hood.” 

Swatts brought out a shabby arrangement of 
canvas and rods, and laid it ready in the bow. 
Then it began to come. 

It was the story of the day before repeated. 


MORE BOATING — PERFORMS 255 


First came the gentle wind, that brought the pretty 
little ripples. Then came more wind, and the rip- 
ples became wavelets. And then came a strong, 
sweeping wind, that brought a haze over the sky 
and brought the wavelets from a few inches up to 
three or four feet, and then, I tell you, it was no 
joke. 

They were headed right into the storm, so that 
each wave they crashed into sent a deluge over 
them, until the rickety spray-hood was put in 
place, and even then it was bad enough. 

There was nothing now but pound, pound, and 
pound. Fresh-water waves come close together, 
so that the little boat pitched like a see-saw, ex- 
posing half her keel on the ^^ups,’^ and making a 
crash and whirl of spray on the downs.’’ 

When the boys saw that the boat was not ac- 
tually going to the bottom, and that Bill’s steady 
pumping kept the water in its place, they began 
to take a pleasure in the storm after all. There 
was no doubt as to Swatts’s pleasure, he seemed 
pleased as possible. Once he turned to the two 
boys. 

‘^Can you swim?” he asked. 

‘^Sure we can,” answered Jack for both. 


256 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

^^How far?’^ 

^^Dunno, maybe a quarter of a mile/^ 

^^Hum, that would n^t do you much good here. 
Never mind, you could take the life-preservers.’^ 

^^Say, you don’t think we’re going under, do 
you?” asked Bill, dolefully; yesterday was 
enough, thank you.” 

^^No, of course not. What do you think this 
is?” said the Chief. 

Just the same, things looked pretty squally 
for a few minutes. There came a gigantic wave 
which caught the sharp bow before it could quite 
rise to it. There was a terrific jump and lurch. 
Gallons of water poured in over the bow, and for 
a second all stared at each other, half dazed. 
Then the Chief woke up. So much water was in 
the hull that he thought it was coming in through 
the bottom. So he loosened the life-preservers, 
keeping the boat headed into the seas with one 
hand, the while, and set Swatts to work at the 
pump, to relieve Bill a bit, meantime thanking 
his stars that Susie still kept on going. 

Suddenly Swatts gave a shout. ^^Look!” 
cried he, ^^we ’ve lost our rowboat!” and sure 
enough, only a broken rope was towing behind 


MORE BOATING — ''SUSIE” PERFORMS 257 


them in the water, while far away drifted the 
rowboat, which they had taken along as a ten- 
der. There was only one thing to do. Watch- 
ing for a moment when the waves seemed to be a 
little less furious, the Chief turned quickly about, 
and went for the lost boat. It was almost laugh- 
able the change that turning made, for at once 
there was no spray, the wind seemed far less 
strong, and the threatening seas became slowly 
moving slants which merely helped them on, and 
it was surprising how fast they really went! In 
a few minutes they had raced back over space 
they had laboriously gained, and the Chief 
steered so closely to the rowboat, when they 
came up to it, that its bow scraped along the side 
of the launch. Then the ready Swatts grabbed 
the remains of the tow-line, and, with Jack^s aid, 
tied the broken ends together, after which the 
launch was carefully turned about, and at once 
they found themselves again in the hurricane, 
being bounced by the waves and covered with 
spray as before. 

Well, it was slow work, they just seemed to 
crawl. But whether the great shock the hull had 
gotten from the big wave had done it, or whether 


258 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


Susie had become ashamed of herself, or whether 
any one of a half dozen things had happened, or 
not, no one knew or cared. Suffice it to say, that 
when the Chief, by way of tempting providence, 
tried putting on full speed, the engine began 
throbbing with might and main, and made very 
good time indeed. And did n’t give a single 
knock, either. And all were so grateful that they 
forgot her past misdeeds in a jiffy, and blessed 
her warmly, though the increased speed made 
them jump more than ever, and sent spray over 
them in a regular deluge. 

At last, their island got between them and the 
storm, and soon they entered their harbor pleased 
enough. Jack turning the crank of the horn with 
might and main, which caused a roar to issue 
from the instrument that sounded like fifty sea- 
sick elephants. 

With sighs of relief they threw over their anchor 
and placed their now heavy suit-cases in the 
tender. Then they rowed to a pier in front of the 
farmhouse we have mentioned, where they found 
a large, soul-satisfying dinner awaiting them. 
After eating until they could eat no more with- 
out danger of serious accident, they strolled back 


MORE BOATING — ''SUSIE^^ PERFORMS 259 


to camp, the boys having decided to spend the 
night with their pleasant hosts. 

That afternoon Bill and Jack enjoyed them- 
selves hugely. And I am telling you about the 
doings in this particular camp because it was a 
very new thing for Bill to have a good time with 
other boys. At the city school where he attended, 
he had been very properly ignored by all the boys 
who were worth anything, and the other kind of 
boys noticed him only to make a mark of him, 
and to bully him. But here were a number of 
fine, manly fellows who seemed to look upon him 
as a desirable companion, and so made much of 
him. As soon as he reached the tents one boy 
inmiediately invited him to go rowing, another 
to go fishing, and still another to play tennis, to 
which end still another boy offered his racquet, 
all being such a delightful experience that Bill 
felt happier than ever before in his life. But he 
had had enough of water, lately, and was dubious 
about tennis, so he went for a walk about the 
place with Swatts, for the broad smile and good- 
nature of the latter had quite won him over. So 
off they went, and, during the walk. Bill told all 
his experiences from the time he left home, not 


260 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


disguising or holding back anything, for there 
was something about this new boy, who was only 
a year older, that made Bill feel willing to give 
him his confidence. Boys often know instinc- 
tively in whom they can trust, and in return Bill 
was given some very straightforward opinions 
of smoking, and other of his past habits. 

Of course. Jack had not been in the least neg- 
lected, for he was by nature more likely to be- 
come popular with a crowd of boys than Bill, 
who was apt to be a little reserved with boys 
as yet. So before long Jack found himself play- 
ing tennis with a tall, curly-headed boy, by whom 
he was well beaten, and then he told some of 
their adventures to an admiring circle, until 
three o^clock came, upon which a shout came 
from the Big Chief’s tent. ^^Swim!” shouted the 
Chief, and others yelled ^^Swim!” at the top of 
their lungs. Then boys came from all directions. 
Swatts and Bill ran from the woods to the Chief’s 
tent, where Swatts also lived, and for a while, 
and a very short while, there was a hasty dispens- 
ing with clothes. Now, as you know, each tent 
had a pier of its own, and as there were three 
tents, there were three piers, made for the bene- 


MORE BOATING — ''SUSIE^^ PERFORMS 261 

fit of those who lived in each tent. But this time 
the presence of the visitors brought all hands to 
the Chief’s pier, where they waited, ready for 
the water, till that gentleman showed himself 
and said, ^^All right.” 

The curly-headed boy led off with a dive like 
that of an alligator, and a yell arose at the mighty 
splash. Then in went “Cuteness,” the best 
diver in the camp, and then, one by one, in went 
all the crew except two or three cautious ones, 
who were just learning to swim, and altogether 
they resembled a school of porpoises gone crazy, 
for such a splashing, plunging, and yelling human 
eyes and ears have rarely experienced. 

Of course there were races. First there was a 
short race, in which Bill audaciously entered 
against the tall, curly-headed boy, whom the boys 
called “Z>(.*nes,” and although the latter was quite 
fast. Bill had managed to get an idea of Raimon’s 
speedy stroke, and so won by a hair, his first 
athletic triumph, which made his chest bulge 
something outrageous. And then there was a 
long distance race, in which Jack found himself 
against Swatts. Some others started with them, 
but just for the fun, for they soon dropped out. 


262 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


leaving Jack and Swatts to have it out between 
them. Their distance — around the point and 
back — was nearly a half mile, and Jack trusted 
to his practiced endurance to give Swatts the sur- 
prise of the latter ^s life. For Jack was used to 
swimming long distances in all kinds of water; 
besides, as we know, he could tramp all day, and 
be never the worse for his long exertion. So he 
started away, confidently enough, satisfied to 
keep up with his opponent, till they had made 
their turn and had started back, though he was a 
little surprised to find that Swatts was keeping up 
just the same speed with which they had started. 
But when only a few hundred feet lay between 
them and their starting-point. Jack suddenly 
let out, and began using his best double over- 
hand, and, as I have said long ago. Jack was no 
slouch. But what was his dismay to liiid that 
his opponent kept right alongside without chang- 
ing his stroke, and not only that, but by hasten- 
ing that stroke a little, steadily drew ahead. 
Try as he could. Jack could not keep up with him, 
and so lost the race by a dozen yards, to his great 
disgust I tell you, though BilFs victory helped 
to even things up. 


MORE BOATING — ''iSUSIE^^ PERFORMS 263 

After the swim the boys rested a while, talking 
about their summers, and then the Chief put in 
appearance with a book, containing an interest- 
ing story, which he read aloud to as many as 
cared to listen, until it was time for supper. 
Then the boys got to work. Some went to the 
farm for bread and milk, others got up fires for 
their several tents, and soon there was a plain, 
substantial supper. 

After cleaning up the supper things, there was 
little done but talk, though the Chief got out a 
kind of zither, upon which he twanged, while a 
couple of the boys sang dolefully. And then they 
all turned in, just as a golden sunset was glowing 
over the water, and om boys found themselves 
on canvas cots in the Chief^s tent, curious cots, 
too, that reminded them of their days on the old 
Belgrade^ for one was over the other, arranged so 
for space economy, and Jack, out of pure habit, 
took the upper one, as he had done on the ship. 

Nothing happened of note that night, except 
that Jack snored vigorously, Swatts talked of 
black spiders in his sleep, and the Chief was 
awake no less than three times to see that all had 
their covers on. 


CHAPTER XIV 


A LITTLE SUEPRISE 

Our boys were awakened by a great Bang ! just 
outside their tent, and awoke with a jump, with 
Antoine and bears in their minds, to discover 
that the morning gun had gone off, and scrambled 
out to find a boy, with a very important air, 
cleaning out the barrel of a trim little saluting 
cannon. 

Then of course there was a plunge in the tak- 
ing of which one yelled with might and main, for 
the water seemed like ice. And then there was 
a great, filling breakfast at the farmhouse, and 
then our boys, reluctantly be it said, got their 
packs in order and prepared to depart, greatly 
appreciating the spirit that made the campers 
urge them to stay for another day. But it was 
not to be thought of, so, after a great shaking of 
hands, and, after giving warm thanks to the Chief, 
who patted them on their heads and mussed up 
their hair, with the evident liking he seemed 


A LITTLE SURPRISE 


265 


to bear for all boys, they started away in the 
Chief’s best boat, a sixteen-foot steel one, in 
which they were rowed in great style by Swatts 
and Court, who made very good time indeed 
across the mile and a half of lake, that lay 
between the camp and the landing dock at the 
little village of Valcour, on the New York State 
shore. 

As the camp became smaller and smaller. Bill 
looked back at it regretfully. 

don’t know when I ’ve had a better time,” 
said he; ^Hhat ’s the finest crowd of boys I ever 
knew.” 

Thanks,” said Swatts, “we think so our- 
selves. Sorry you ’re going, though. The Chief 
likes you, and I guess you could have stayed 
some days with us.” 

“Wish you had,” puffed Court, who was labor- 
ing at his oar, “but gee whiz! I bet you ’re going 
to have a swell time! Wish I was going with 
you!” 

“We do have pretty good fun,” said Bill, “and 
I ’m half sorry our trip ’s almost over, for it 
won’t take us long to get to Crown Point, and 
then — oh for New York and my folks! I tell 


266 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


you I ’m getting crazy to see those folks of mine! 
I ’ll be getting homesick, Jack, the first thing 
you know.” 

^^Well, keep your shirt on,” replied Jack. 
guess your folks can stand it a while longer — if 
they ’ve survived thus far.” And Bill kept very 
quiet for a little while, for he felt in his heart 
that there was more truth than fiction in what 
Jack said. There was no reason indeed why his 
parents should be at all anxious to see him. Wait 
till he got home, that was all. He ’d show them! 

All too soon they reached the wharf, and said 
good-by, taking each other’s home address, as 
boys often do. There was regret on both sides 
when Bill and Jack, taking their blanket-rolls 
over their shoulders, took the road to the south, 
leaving their two friends gazing after them and 
occasionally turning to wave another farewell. 

The boys could not but be charmed with their 
road, however, for it followed closely the west 
shore of the lake, and for a mile or more, at first, 
was shaded by a wonderful row of ancient poplars. 
Along the rocky shore there was a continual 
sound of fresh splashing, for just enough east 
wind was blowing to send a cool breeze to our 


A LITTLE SURPRISE 


267 


boys, and keep a constant chattering and break- 
ing of little waves on the flat rocks and pebbly 
beaches. 

For quite a way the road was smooth and level, 
but at last it turned from the lake into the low 
first hills of the Adirondacks, though once they 
had to descend and ford the Ausable River, a 
beautiful stream indeed. Far to the south they 
could see the rise of the first mountain, and they 
had selected this for their day’s destination, and, 
without incident, reached its summit in the mid- 
dle of the afternoon, and for a while were almost 
speechless with the wonder of the view, for the 
lake lay spread out before them in all its glory, 
stretching north and south clear to the horizon, 
and straight across to where the Green Moun- 
tains of Vermont showed their irregular out- 
lines against the sky. If you do not know the 
feeling of awe, and almost of worship, that one 
usually experiences when such a view is un- 
folded, then you have missed much, and I am 
glad that our boys saw it, and felt it, for it did 
them good, I believe. 

I would tire you indeed if I described all the 
country through which the boys passed the next 


268 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


few days. Besides, description denies it full 
justice, and one must actually walk through it 
to really appreciate it. And the boys appreciated 
it from the wonderful mirrored cliffs of the beau- 
tiful mountain curiously named Poke-o-moon- 
shine, south, through a charming succession of 
mountains and lakes, down within about twenty 
miles of Crown Point. 

These days were very pleasant ones; every- 
thing, from the temperature to the scenery, went 
to make them so, and they spent most of the time 
pointing out to each other the natural beauties 
they saw, and talking seriously over their past 
experiences and their plans for the future. Per- 
haps Bill talked more about himself than Jack, 
and from the latter, as from Swatts, Bill heard 
new comments upon his old habits, character- 
istics, and actions, until he became so heartily 
ashamed of them that to think of them almost 
made him ill. 

So, chatting most of the way, they came easily 
down along the lake, now near it, and in sight, 
now back a few miles into the country, until, as 
I said, they came to within twenty miles of Crown 
Point, one afternoon, and there decided to spend 


A LITTLE SURPRISE 


269 


the night, their last night under the open sky, 
perhaps, and then push on to Crown Point early 
next morning. 

They felt a httle forlorn, I ^11 confess, as they 
made their last camp-fire, and finally lay down 
beside it for the night. 

^‘My, this has been a summer for me!^^ de- 
clared Bill. ''I’m sure I shall think everything is 
different when I get home. I suppose it is be- 
cause I ’m different myself. Wonder if my folks 
are home now! Hope so, though it isn’t likely. 
They ’re generally off to some beastly hotel in the 
summer. Gee, but I hate the idea of a hotel!” 

For a while they talked, and at last fell asleep, 
while their fire burned lower and lower, but kept 
its embers red and glowing in the dark of the 
night. 

The time for surprising folks is the first thing 
in the morning. Bill and Jack had had more than 
one surprise at that time. This morning was to 
bring them yet another. 

The cool gray of dawn was just coming from 
the east, when Jack, with a broad yawn, woke up, 
stretched, then sat up and looked around. Then 


270 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


he stared, stock still, like a graven image, for a 
full minute, then rubbed his eyes, scratched the 
back of his head, and stared again. Thunder!’^ 
he exclaimed to himself, ^^have I been dreaming 
for a week or two?’^ And so, for a few minutes he 
sat, staring with all his eyes. Then he gave a wild 
echoing yell that would have made an Indian 
green with envy, and jumped upon one of two 
figures he beheld sleeping sedately beside them. 
‘‘Oh, you Raimon!^^ he yelled, “blessed if I 
donT pound your head in!^^ 

Raimon, for that ’s who it was, did not take 
long to wake up under such treatment, and being 
no weakling, the two were soon rolling over like 
two very agitated eels, while Bill sat up in a man- 
ner that showed that the world must be coming to 
an end, in his estimation. Then the other figure 
arose and disclosed none other than Antoine, whom 
Jack immediately butted in the stomach with his 
head, leaving the puffing Raimon to Bill, who took 
it out of him as Jack had donev Then An- 
toine, gently but firmly, having set Jack upon the 
ground, the three boys looked at each other until 
suddenly Antoine put back his head and roared 
with laughter, upon which all three boys joined 


A LITTLE SURPRISE 


271 


in, until you could probably have heard the noise 
for a mile. 

^^Some pretty much smprise, what?’^ chuckled 
Antoine. What you t’ink — hey?^’ 

Surprise! Don’t talk to me about your sur- 
prises!” declared Jack. We’ve had all kinds 
of surprises, but this here one beats the Dutch, 
by gum! What do you think you ’ve been doin’? 
Following us all about the country? I ’dare, 
Bill, I believe these here two specimens have been 
taggin’ after us all this time! Bet we shook you 
once, though, when we went out in that blessed 
scow.” 

“Ye-es, vraiment, sure,” replied Antoine, bob- 
bing his head. You lef’ me that time. I t’ink you 
some ver’ beeg fools. Champlain no pond, I say. 
I t’ink you drown that time sure, but I follow over 
nex’ day, an’ a farmer name Noel, who live on Val- 
cour, he tell me dat some two ugly boys come dere, 
an’ then I know all right, an’ so follow pretty 
close, yes, soon get right behin’. You almos’ 
catch me one time, hey, Raimon? Yes. An’ las’ 
night we come close, and t’ink we give you one beeg 
surprise. Pretty good, I t’ink.” 

^^Sure, it ’s pretty good,” said Bill, didn’t 


272 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

like your sneaking off that way without our saying 
‘ good-by/ or ^ thank you/ So I tell you I ’m 
glad first rate to see you again, and that good-for- 
nothing Raimon, too.” 

^'Sure,” said Raimon, grinning and bobbing his 
head. 

^^How far are you going with us, Antoine?” 
asked Jack. We ’ll reach Crown Point to-day, 
I think; it ’s only twenty inile§, and good 
goin’.” 

^^Oh, we go to Albany with you boys, Raimon 
an’ I, and den we go in train to Bost’n with 
Jackie. Den you. Bill, tak’ train for New York, 
what? So, give my regard to your dad, who is my 
frien’.” 

Then they got to work with their breakfast, just 
as the sun began to show itself, and it felt like old 
times to see Antoine preparing their meal again. 
This accomplished, they set stoutly off, and mak- 
ing very good time of it, reached Crown Point at 
about one o’clock and took a train for Albany, 
which got them there in time for supper. They 
ate in the railroad cafe, to the wonderment of all 
beholders, who stared till Bill actually felt their 
eyes making holes in the back of his neck. But 


A LITTLE SURPRISE 


273 


he was not in the least ashamed of his clothes 
or his companions. He had been roughing it, and 
was proud of it, too. 

After supper, Antoine, who seemed to be expe- 
rienced in all kinds of traveling, and in all places, 
took Bill down to the great river steamer that 
makes the night trip to New York. The purser 
looked blank when he saw the boy for whom An- 
toine was purchasing, or trying to purchase, pas- 
sage and secure a cabin. But the mysterious 
word, Van Lennep,’^ whispered through the 
grating, seemed to work wonders, for the cabin 
was instantly secured, and Bill shown to it. Then 
they all went down to the gangway, where they 
bade each other good-by. Bill found it very 
hard to say this to the good Antoine, who had 
proved to be a wise friend indeed, and still harder 
to say it to little Raimon, who was visibly in tears, 
but the hardest of all was to say it to Jack, and he 
held that boy^s hand as though he would never 
let it go; and, truth to tell. Jack felt no better 
himself, for if ever two boys had been true 
comrades, those boys were Bill and Jack, the 
millionairess son, and the nephew of an old 
sea-captain. 


274 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING, 


Well, Jack went away at last, and Bill sorrow- 
fully returned to his deck, and sat out at the end 
of the bow, feeling very solitary in the jolly crowd 
of passengers that was congregated there. For 
now all his camping and tramping went before his 
eyes, and always he could see Jack, who never 
failed to be cheery, good-humored, and sympa- 
thetic. He promised himself by everything he 
could think of, that that was not the last of Jack 
for him, and I assure you that it was not, either, 
and may indeed tell you, sometime, what they did 
when they came together again. 

At last, after a terrific deep whistling, the 
steamer put itself in motion, and until the night 
winds became cold. Bill remained at the bow, al- 
ternately thinking of his summer, and Jack, and 
watching the play of the steamer’s search-light 
upon the surrounding country. Then he went to 
his stateroom, and the first time for many weeks, 
slept upon a comfortable, civilized bed. But he 
was a little mournful again, for, as every one 
knows, those cabins have two berths apiece, one 
upper and one lower. And Bill thought, as he 
crept into the lower, how pleasant it would 
be if Jack were above him, as he used to be. 


A LITTLE SURPRISE 


275 


Nevertheless, his twenty-mile tramp of that day 
began to tell, and soon he was as fast asleep as 
any on that boat, which, gathering speed, was 
soon stringing off the miles that lay between 
Albany and New York. 


CHAPTER XV 


BACK TO NEW YORK 

When Bill awoke he decided upon a plan of war 
for the day. It would be a very unpleasant and 
difficult one to carry out. He planned to keep 
away from home till evening, when he knew his 
father would be home to dinner, and then walk 
tempestuously in, and — well, he thought he 
knew what would follow. 

He had to spend the day somehow, so he went 
to the great Museum of Natural History. He 
went all the way in a ^Haxi,^^ too, for the simple 
reason that, clothed as he was, he knew that his 
appearance in the streets would be likely to cause 
too much of a sensation. Yet at Albany he had 
refused, point blank, Antoine^s suggestion to pur- 
chase city garb ! Proud as he was of his costume, he 
felt that the streets of New York were not used 
to it. As it was, when he descended, at the 
Museum, from the ^Haxi-cab,’’ a street boy got 
a little too impertinent, and had to be hit on 


BACK TO NEW YORK 


277 


the nose, as a hint to be more discreet in the 
future. 

Bill left his blanket-roll with the checking-clerk, 
who looked from Bill to his roll and back again 
with amazement, and probably thought that BilFs 
proper place was in that museum, doubtless, but 
within one of the glass cases. And Bill got no little 
attention himself, as he leisurely wandered from 
corridor to corridor, clothed simply in his khaki 
trousers, blue flannel shirt, and high moccasins, 
carrying his soft felt hat in his hand. Indeed, 
quite a crowd of curious youngsters followed him 
about, something that would have annoyed him 
terribly, a dozen weeks before, but now it only 
amused him, so that he grinned cheerfully at 
them, as friendly as possible. 

The Museum is an immense place, but Bill 
searched out every nook and cranny of it, eating 
his lunch in the curious Museum caf4, and then 
beginning again. But at last the brightness of the 
day did actually begin to fade, and so, at the last 
moment, he went to the entrance, received his 
pack from the wondering clerk, and bravely, 
despite stares, took his way home, curbing his 
tremendous desire to run, a desire that had been 


278 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

on him all day, be sure. Spending as much time 
as he could, he managed to reach the door at the 
time it was customary for his parents to be 
at the table. Trembling with excitement, he 
rang the bell, and in a minute was confronted by 
the dignified butler, whom he had abused so much 
in the past, and who did not in the least recognize 
him now. 

^‘Go way!” said the butler, donT give to 
beggars.” 

He was about to shut the door in BilFs face, 
but the latter pushed in so quickly that the man 
was almost upset. 

“How do, Dennis,” said Bill, giving the man a 
poke as he passed. 

“Be the powers above!” exclaimed Dennis, 
paralyzed, “if it isnT Master William hisself!” 

“Master William” did not wait, but marched 
straight through the familiar rooms into the 
dining-room, where his parents were sedately 
eating their dinner. As the door Bill stopped a 
minute and looked at them, as they sat there unsus- 
piciously, then the tears sprang into his eyes. 
“Mother!” he cried, and entered the room. 
Then there was a time of it! There was a glad 


BACK TO NEW YORK 


279 


cry, and almost before Bill knew it, his mother 
had him in her arms, and then his father got a 
chance to take a look at him, and then they made 
him stand alone while they viewed him from a 
little distance, and then the performance began 
again. But before long the worst was over, and 
Bill found himself seated at the table, before a 
place miraculously set in an instant by the capa- 
ble Dennis, and, well — perhaps you can imagine 
how they talked. 

Bill and his mother did most of the talking, while 
Mr. Van Lennep watched and took stock. In 
place of the yellow, stoop-shouldered, bad-man- 
nered boy of two months before, was a brown- 
faced, sturdy, straight youngster, who held his 
head erect, and looked at one directly from a pair 
of clear, bright eyes, that continually danced with 
fun and good-nature. His manner towards his 
father was distinctly respectful, and towards his 
mother very manly and loving. I ^11 give you my 
word that Mr. Van Lennep could hardly beheve 
his eyes, for this handsome, strong-looking boy 
and his old boy, Willie, were as distinctly unlike as 
two boys could well be. 

It was quite late that night when Bill finished 


280 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 

his story, one that interested two people, you may 
probably believe. 

‘'So you think you enjoyed your sununer, do 
you? asked his father, finally. 

“Yes, sir, I sure do think so! And if you don’t 
think I ’m grateful to old Captain Seawell, and to 
Antoine, and Jack, and — and to you, sir, then 
you ’re a whole lot mistaken, I tell you.” 

Then he brought out his pack, opened it, and 
showed the kind of things he had carried with him, 
and then, last of all, he suggested that something 
might be done for Jack and Raimon, who, accord- 
ing to him, at least, were undoubtedly the two 
most wonderful and most desirable boys upon 
whom the sun ever shone. 

When they finally got him to bed, his parents 
said little, but their looks were expressive enough. 

“I ’ll confess, John,” said Mrs. Van Lennep, as 
they sat alone, talking it over, “I’ll confess,” 
said she, “that I ’ve had many doubts and fears, 
this summer — ” 

“So have I,” said her husband. 

“But it was well worth it, a million times. And 
I most gratefully thank God that you thought it 
might be well to send him — yachting!” 


BACK TO NEW YORK 


281 


There ’s not much to add to this story. Only 
you might be interested to know what happened 
when Bill returned to school, which he did in a 
couple of weeks. 

When opening day arrived, he made his toilet with 
scrupulous care. His father was actually alarmed 
when Bill came to the breakfast-table, with his hair 
plastered down flat, as Willie^' used to fix it. 

'‘Don’t you mind, father,” said he, with a grin, 
"nothing serious. Just going to have some fun, 
that ’s all.” So he went to school, that morning, 
looking quite as much a young dude as ever he 
had looked, though he found it difficult to stoop 
his shoulders, and he could n’t get up a respect- 
able sneer to save his soul. 

When he arrived at the school gate, there was a 
little company of boys gathered there, his old friend 
Jimmy Fairfax being among them. 

"Why, bless me soul!” cried Jimmy, his pig- 
gish eyes actually lighting up, "if here doesn’t 
come our dear friend Elizabeth! Lizzie Van Len- 
nep, fellows! take off your hats, you impolite 
dubs!” He took off his with a low bow to Bill, 
but Bill pretended to take no notice, and tried to 
sneak by the bully as he used to do. 


282 BILLY: HIS SUMMER AWAKENING 


^^Oh, please don^t leave us, ducky dear!’’ cried 
the bully, grabbing Bill by the collar. Instantly the 
fun began. The eyes of the onlookers seemed 
almost to pop out, and their jaws to drop, for Bill 
threw off his coat, quick as lightning, and sailing 
into Mr. Jinuny Fairfax, gave that gentleman quite 
the worst pounding he ever had in his life! For 
a minute or two the thunderstruck bully tried to 
defend himself, but such fellows are always cow- 
ards at heart, and first thing you know, Jimmy 
turned and ran, actually blubbering, and a sight 
to look upon. True it is that Bill got a black 
eye, but it did not make him any less a hero among 
the boys, who crowded around him, wondering 
at his square shoulders and bronze face, and Bill 
suddenly found himself one of the popular boys of 
the school. 

Bill returned home rather late, that afternoon, 
and seeing his father sitting at the library table, 
he walked into the room. Mr. Van Lennep 
looked up pleasantly, and then saw, with great 
surprise, that Bill was again decorated with a fine 
black eye, as he had been upon another sad occa- 
sion, some time before. 

'^And where did you get that eye. Bill?” he 


BACK TO NEW YORK 


283 


asked, half amused and half in doubt. Now Bill 
had not forgotten last June, either. 

^^Oh, had a scrap with one of the fellows,’^ 
replied Bill, chuckling, ^'and — and — and I guess 
I gave him as good as I got!’’ 

And Mr. Van Lennep, looking at Bill’s grinning 
face and sturdy shoulders, was quite willing to 
believe that he had! 






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